Politics
Canada extending military mission in Latvia to ‘deter’ Russia, Carney says – National TenX News
Prime Minister Mark Carney has announced that Canada will keep troops in Latvia through to 2029, as part of a mission to deter Russian aggression in Europe that has given Ottawa an outsized role in the transatlantic alliance.
“We must deter and fortify. And that is the way that we can provide true reassurance,” Carney said at a Tuesday news conference in Riga, flanked by Latvian Prime Minister Evika Silina.
Carney’s office says there are now 2,000 Canadian Armed Forces troops in Latvia as part of Operation Reassurance, which is Canada’s largest overseas mission. Canadian troops have been there since 2017 to strengthen the defence of Europe’s eastern flank and to deter Russian from invading Baltic countries, through what many call a “trip wire.”
The current authority for the mission ends in March 2026, but Carney says he plans to extend that by another three years.
“We will in the process increase the brigade’s capabilities here in Latvia, reinforce our collective defence, strengthen our co-operative security, and keep the NATO presence strong,” Carney said.
Canada is co-ordinating the role of soldiers from roughly 10 countries in Latvia, to shore up the country’s defences and to train Latvian soldiers, according to Carleton University professor Stephen Saideman.
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“We’re punching above our weight,” he said in an interview. “We’re basically being treated by the rest of NATO as equal to the U.K. and Germany,” who are co-ordinating similar multinational brigades in Estonia and Lithuania respectively.
Ottawa aims to have a full cadre of 2,200 persistently deployed Canadian troops in Latvia sometime in 2026, and has been building new infrastructure at the Adazi base near Riga in the past two years to make up for overcrowding.
Canada occasionally has the full presence of 2,200 troops for specific exercises, Saideman said.
He said Carney’s visit is likely meant “to help educate Canadians about this major commitment” and to put a face on the boost to defence spending that is coming the expense of other services for Canadians.
“He might be going there to show to Canada where the money is going, and why the money is necessary,” he said.
Saideman added that the mission is particularly complex as France would have likely led the mission, and Canada is instead running a mission with smaller contingents from many countries, which requires more work to co-ordinate.
“We are doing a whole lot that doesn’t necessarily get recognized back in Canada,” he said.
The mission started after Russia’s 2014 invasion of Ukraine and annexation of Crimea, and has taken on increased importance since Moscow’s February 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Earlier Tuesday, Carney said in Berlin that Russian President Vladimir Putin is afraid to sit down with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, after U.S. President Donald Trump said the two should talk directly on how to end the war.
“We see President Putin putting conditions and conditions, and stalling and stalling, and being afraid of having this meeting,” Carney said.
Marcus Kolga, a senior fellow with the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, said Canada’s mission in Latvia is a major contribution.
“It’s probably one of the most important international missions that we’ve been engaged in since the liberation of the Netherlands in World War II,” he said.
“It allows them to go on living their lives normally, even though that threat is right at their doorstep,” he said, adding this applies to Latvians as well as neighbouring Estonians and Lithuanians.
“It demonstrates that Canada is active, and it won’t be pushed around by Vladimir Putin,” he said.
Global Affairs Canada’s profile on Latvia says both countries “share a close relationship grounded in shared fundamental values, such as support for democracy, human rights and the rules-based international order.”
Latvia has deep scars over violence meted out on the population both during the Nazi occupation and during Latvia’s time as part of the Soviet Union.
—With files from Dylan Robertson in Ottawa
© 2025 The Canadian Press
Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters Sunday he has agreed in principle to join U.S. President Donald Trump’s controversial “Board of Peace,” meant to support the reconstruction of Gaza.
Carney told reporters in Doha that Trump asked him about joining this board “a few weeks ago.”
“There is a humanitarian tragedy in Gaza that is ongoing and Canada will make every effort possible to address this situation,“ he said at a news conference at an Islamic Art museum in the capital of the Gulf country.
He said the president put the question to him a few weeks ago and he said yes and that he and Canada will do everything it can to bring peace to the region.
Carney said there is still not unimpeded humanitarian aid flowing into help the people of Gaza and that is a “precondition for moving forward.”
The prime minister said details still need to be worked out on how exactly the board and the financing will work.
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The Board of Peace is part of the Trump-brokered peace plan that saw a ceasefire take hold between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
The creation of new organization has raised concerns that it could deal a blow to the United Nations system of international cooperation that Trump has long argued is ineffective and dysfunctional, and place Trump in control of how the money is distributed.
The text of the charter, published by various international media outlets, states there is a “need for a more nimble and effective international peace-building body” than the UN.
The board will be chaired by Trump himself, and its executive makeup includes Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Trump’s Middle East special envoy Steve Witkoff, Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, and former U.K. prime minister Tony Blair.
Earlier in the month Trump withdrew from dozens of international organizations, many of which are related to the UN.
Carney said working through the peace board is “consistent” with Canadian goals to ensure “unimpeded” humanitarian aid can enter the territory and work toward a two-state solution.
“We will explore every avenue in order to do that,” he said.
© 2026 The Canadian Press
Prime Minister Mark Carney says Qatar has committed to “significant” investments for Canada’s major building projects, calling it a “new chapter” in bilateral relations.
Carney made the announcement Sunday following his meeting with Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar.
The new measures will include the finalization of the Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement with Qatar, a deal that has seen years of stalled negotiations, Carney said.
“We are raising our relationship and our level of alignment by making friends with strategic partners,” Carney said. “To launch this new chapter in our relationship, I’m pleased to announce that Qatar has committed to make significant strategic investments in Canada’s nation-building projects.
“This capital will help the projects get built faster and supercharge our energy industries, while helping to create thousands of high-paying careers for Canadians.”
He also said the new agreement will help Canadian businesses to “more easily” expand operations in Qatar as well as attract investment from the country.
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According to a readout from the Prime Minister’s Office, air services between Canada and Qatar will also be expanded and a defence attache from Canada will be posted in the country.
According to the PMO, the two countries have agreed to launch negotiations on a new framework focused on military, security and defence matters, and expand investment opportunities on areas such as AI.
The PMO said the two leaders agreed to stay in touch and Carney noted Sunday he had invited the Emir to visit Canada later this year and attend the World Cup match between their two countries with him.
The plans with Qatar are Carney’s latest in a slew of agreements and travel to other countries to discuss trade deals since his election last year.
Asked about his ongoing efforts to meet with countries interested in trade, Carney told reporters that multilateral relationships are “being eroded.”
“The consequence of that is there is a reduction in freer trade, much more trade is tariff-based or otherwise restricted and there is virtually no, with all due respect to those who are trying, virtually no multilateral progress,” Carney said.
“Where there is progress, and where Canada and like-minded countries are looking to make progress, is through pluriality deals… which is multiple countries but not all countries.”
On Friday, Canada announced that 49,000 Chinese-made electric vehicles (EVs) would soon be imported each year with a lowered 6.1 per cent tariff after Carney struck a deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Carney added on Sunday that Xi showed interest in expanding China’s trade relations with other countries, and that’s why Canada is establishing trade deals with other countries, such as Qatar.
“In this more uncertain and dangerous world, we’ve chosen to create greater stability, security and prosperity together,” Carney said.
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
World leaders are raising alarm after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to impose sweeping tariffs on European allies in an effort to pressure Denmark into negotiations over Greenland.
The move is sparking protests across the Arctic and sharp rebukes from Europe and Canada.
On Saturday, thousands of people marched through snow and ice in Greenland’s capital, Nuuk, chanting “Greenland is not for sale,” waving national flags.
Police described the demonstration as the largest they have ever seen in the city.
About 825 kilometres away, dozens of people rallied in Iqaluit, Nunavut, in a show of solidarity with Greenlanders.
“Greenland is owned by the Greenlandic people,” protesters chanted in Inuktut as they marched for an hour in freezing, windy conditions.
The protests came as Trump announced he would impose a 10 per cent import tax starting next month on goods from eight European countries.
These nations include Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Finland, because of their opposition to U.S. control of Greenland.
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The tariff would rise to 25 per cent on June 1 if no deal was reached for what Trump called the “Complete and Total purchase of Greenland.”
The president suggested the tariffs were leveraged to force talks over Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark that Trump says is vital to U.S. national security.
French President Emmanuel Macron said France stands firmly behind Greenland’s sovereignty and rejected the use of trade threats.
“Tariff threats are unacceptable and have no place in this context,” Macron wrote on social media, adding that Europeans would respond “in a united and coordinated manner” if the measures are confirmed.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Greenland’s future is for Greenlanders and Denmark to decide.
“Applying tariffs on allies for pursuing the collective security of NATO allies is completely wrong,” Starmer said, adding the issue would be raised directly with the U.S. administration.
Bob Rae, former Canadian ambassador to the United Nations, also chimed in on Trump’s announcement.
The tariff threat could mark a significant rupture between the U.S. and its NATO allies.
Greenland already hosts the U.S.-run Pituffik Space Base under a 1951 defence agreement with Denmark, supporting missile warning, missile defence and space surveillance for the U.S. and NATO.
“There is no sign of the Trump war of aggression against Greenland and Denmark letting up. It is not about ‘security’ any more than Venezuela was about ‘narco-terrorism.’ They are both about seizing control and plunder.”
He further added, “No country, including my own, Canada, is safe or secure.”
The tariff threat could mark a significant rupture between the U.S. and its NATO allies.
Trump is expected to face questions about the proposed tariffs and Greenland later this week.
He is scheduled to attend the World Economic Forum in Davos, alongside several European leaders he has threatened with tariffs.
— With files from The Canadian Press
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
Carney agrees ‘in principle’ to Trump’s Gaza peace board – National TenX News
Qatar to invest in Canada’s major building projects, Carney says – National TenX News
“Unacceptable’: Allies react to Trump Greenland tariff threats – National TenX News
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