Good morning,
The Ukrainian government expressed “deep disappointment” yesterday at Canada’s decision to send back repaired Russian-owned gas turbines that had been stranded in Montreal because of sanctions against Moscow. Kyiv warned that the move would “strengthen Moscow’s sense of impunity” and encourage Russia to keep using energy as a weapon.
Russia previously cited the turbines delayed return as the reason why the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline, which runs from Russia to Germany, is operating at 40-per-cent capacity.
The Canadian government on Saturday announced it would return the turbines – using an exemption to get around Ottawa’s sanctions on Russia – citing requests from Germany and other European countries trying to replenish gas stocks for the winter months ahead. The grounded turbines will be sent to Germany, whose government will then turn them over to Russia.
There are six Nord Stream turbines being sent back from Montreal, a far larger number than originally believed.
Pipes at the landfall facilities of the 'Nord Stream 1' gas pipeline are pictured in Lubmin, Germany, March 8, 2022.HANNIBAL HANSCHKE/Reuters
This is the daily Morning Update newsletter. If you’re reading this on the web, or it was forwarded to you from someone else, you can sign up for Morning Update and more than 20 other Globe newsletters on our newsletter sign-up page.
Industry Minister to meet with telecoms after ‘unacceptable’ outage
After the massive Rogers service outage on Friday, federal Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne has told Rogers CEO Tony Staffieri that “the situation is unacceptable,” according to a statement from Alexander Wellstead, Mr. Champagne’s spokesperson.
Millions of Canadians throughout the country were left without internet, wireless and home phone service. Many were unable to call 911 or make purchases with debit or credit cards. Hospitals, public transit, border crossings and countless other public and private services were disrupted.
The outage highlighted Rogers’s ubiquity in Canada at a time when it is attempting to persuade federal regulators that its proposed $26-billion takeover of Shaw Communications Inc. won’t harm consumers by reducing competition in the telecom industry. One of the regulatory bodies from which the merger still needs approval is Mr. Champagne’s ministry.
Rogers said the outage occurred after a maintenance update to its core network. Staffieri said in a statement on Saturday that a system failure led the company’s routers to malfunction.
Japan’s ruling coalition victorious after country votes in shadow of Shinzo Abe assassination
Japanese voters delivered the ruling coalition a strong majority in parliamentary elections for the upper house yesterday, days after former prime minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated on the campaign trail in Nara.
Preliminary results showed that the Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition allies, Komeito, now control at least 146 seats in the 248-strong House of Councillors, half of which was up for election.
On Friday, Abe was shot while speaking in support of Kei Sato, a candidate for the LDP, which the former prime minister led to repeated victories in the eight years running up to his resignation in 2020. The LDP was already favourites before Abe’s assassination, and most analysts expected that if the killing had an effect on voting, it would be to strengthen support for the ruling party.
Got a news tip that you’d like us to look into? E-mail us at tips@globeandmail.com Need to share documents securely? Reach out via SecureDrop
Also on our radar
Maurice ‘Mom’ Boucher, former Quebec Hells Angels leader, dies at 69 from cancer: The notorious 1990s kingpin, who was the public face of a savage turf war over drug trafficking that left more than 160 people dead, died in prison of throat cancer.
Horgan welcomes premiers to address ‘record inflation,’ health care funding: Canada’s 13 premiers and territorial leaders hope to discuss easing the high cost of living in a Council of the Federation meeting today in Victoria, B.C.
Jan. 6 panel sets prime-time hearing on Donald Trump, may hear testimony from Steve Bannon: On Thursday evening, the Jan. 6 committee is returning to prime time to examine the three-hour plus stretch when former president Donald Trump failed to act as a mob of supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol.
Conservative leadership candidates bring the campaign trail to the Calgary Stampede: Four candidates for the Conservative Party leadership race gave short speeches on Saturday evening at the Calgary Conservative Stampede Barbecue, a yearly fundraising event that had its importance solidified in Stephen Harper’s years as leader.
British Conservative leadership candidates turn against each other as race heats up: The race to replace British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has already turned nasty, with candidates and their backers openly criticizing each other and preparing damaging secret dossiers on competitors.
Sri Lanka protesters say they won’t let up until President, PM leave: Thousands of protesters stormed the residences of the President and Prime Minister on Saturday, prompting the two leaders to agree to resign. Leaders of the movement say they plan to stay until the officials leave office.
Morning markets
Global shares weaker: World shares slid on Monday as investors braced for a U.S. inflation report that could force another super-sized hike in interest rates, and the start of an earnings season in which profits will be under pressure. Around 6:30 a.m. ET, the pan-European STOXX 600 fell 0.47 per cent. Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC 40 were off 0.84 per cent and 0.79 per cent, respectively. Britain’s FTSE 100 lost 0.45 per cent. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei gained 1.11 per cent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 2.77 per cent. New York futures were lower. The Canadian dollar was trading at 76.95 US cents.
What everyone’s talking about
Vass Bednar: “For me, though, the outage of Rogers cellular and wireless services was not primarily about the need for competition reform in Canada. Instead, it reinforced the idea that our telecommunication networks are vital public infrastructure that is controlled by private corporations. We’ve lost sight of that balance, despite the ways we rely on those networks.”
Catherine Collins and Douglas Frantz: “In recent decades, wild Atlantic and Pacific salmon have almost disappeared from Canada’s rivers and oceans – victims of habitat destruction, overfishing and climate change. In their place have come farm-raised Atlantic salmon, which now account for as much as 90 per cent of the world’s salmon consumption. Canada’s iconic fish has become an industrial commodity, like feedlot cattle and factory chickens.”
Today’s editorial cartoon
David Parkins/The Globe and Mail
Living better
How (and why) I moved from Toronto to Spain in the middle of a pandemic
Ever considered what your life would be like if you moved to a new city halfway across the world? When the pandemic hit, one family decided to pack up their life in Toronto and move to Valencia, Spain. Here’s a guide to how they made it happen, from picking their new home, to figuring out the paperwork that comes with an international move, to the payoff they found at the end of the long journey.
Moment in time: July 11
EDMONTON REVITALIZING CORE UNDER GHERMEZIANS' SPELL -- "If we believe in something we fight for it," says Nader Ghermezian, who calls the West Edmonton Mall's contribution of shopping and entertainment a "fantasyland tourist Mecca." A $3-million replica of the Santa Maria is positioned in the middle of Deep Sea Adventure Lake in the West Edmonton Mall, January 16, 1986. Photo by Hans Deryk / The Globe and Mail. Originally published June 14, 1986. NB: La Santa María, alternatively La Gallega, was the largest of the three Spanish ships used by Christopher Columbus in his first voyage across the Atlantic Ocean in 1492, the others being the Niña and the Pinta. Her master and owner was Juan de la Cosa. Requisitioned by order of Queen Isabella and by contract with Christopher Columbus, whom de la Cosa knew previously, the Santa María galleon became Columbus's flagship on the voyage as long as it was afloat. Having gone aground on Christmas Day, 1492, on the shores of Haiti, through inexperience of the helmsman, it was partially dismantled to obtain timbers for Fort Navidad. The fort was the first Spanish settlement in the New World, which Columbus had claimed for Spain. He thus regarded the wreck as providential. The hull remained where it was, the subject of much modern wreck-hunting without successful conclusion.HANS DERYK/The Globe and Mail
West Edmonton Mall
For more than 100 years, photographers and photo editors working for The Globe and Mail have preserved an extraordinary collection of news photography. Every Monday, The Globe features one of these images. This month, we’re looking at amusement parks.
West Edmonton Mall: Come for the shopping, stay for the attractions. Or is it the other way around? The mall – one of the biggest in the world – is consumerism writ large, with more than 800 stores and 100 eateries. However, it simultaneously offers fun-seekers top-notch amusement park escapism in an indoor setting. The permanent attractions – including 30 rides, carnival games and Go-Karts – not to mention the cornucopia of retail choices, sets the WEM apart from most amusement parks, which are seasonal. The 1986 photo above, by The Globe’s Hans Deryk, shows the large-scale replica of Christopher Columbus’s Santa Maria, in the middle of Deep Sea Adventure Lake. Edmonton’s hugely successful blueprint has since been copied by enormous shopping centres elsewhere, including Dubai and Kuala Lumpur. The WEM attracts 30 million visitors a year and is Alberta’s No. 1 tourist destination. Philip King
Subscribers and registered users of globeandmail.com can dig deeper into our News Photo Archive at tgam.ca/newsphotoarchive.
Read today's horoscopes. Enjoy today's puzzles.
If you’d like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday morning, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.