Report predicts Hudson Bay polar bears could disappear in a few decades

CBC
Fri, June 14, 2024 

A mother polar bear and cub near Churchill, Man. (Elisha Dacey/CBC - image credit)


Two subpopulations of polar bear in Hudson Bay will disappear in the next few decades if the world isn't able to cap global warming at 2 C, according to a new multi-disciplinary study.

The report, published in the journal Nature, Communications Earth and Environment on Thursday, looks at various scenarios of warming and what it would do to sea ice, seals, and polar bears.

Julienne Stroeve, a professor at the University of Manitoba and the report's lead author, said with more than two degrees of warming above pre-industrial levels, both the southern and western populations of the Hudson Bay polar bear will become extirpated. That means they'd be extinct locally.


Experts have warned for years that the Hudson Bay polar bear population could go extinct within a few decades. The latest study concludes with what it calls a more "alarming outlook" — that the local extinction is expected to happen sometime between the 2030s and 2060s.

A pair of maps show the range of the western and southern Hudson Bay polar bear sub-populations.

A pair of maps show the range of the western and southern Hudson Bay polar bear sub-populations. (Submitted by Annie Edwards)

"I think we need to start telling people, sadly, the harsh realities of what's to come if we don't do anything," said Stroeve. "It's going to transform the entire Arctic region beyond contemporary recognition."

Elder says polar bears not as fat as they used to be

David Kuptana, an elder from Ulukhaktok, N.W.T. who shares his home with different polar bears, said this past hunting season was "really good."

The N.W.T. is home to the Southern Beaufort Sea, Northern Beaufort Sea and Viscount Melville Sound polar bear subpopulations. A limited number of tags to hunt from each subpopulation are given out each year.

Kuptana said his family brought in a number of bears of a good size — a sign, he says, that the population living in his region is doing well. But he has noticed some things that cause him to worry.


David Kuptana is an N.W.T. hunter.

David Kuptana, an elder from Ulukhaktok, N.W.T., said this past polar bear hunting season was 'really good' — but he is noticing some things that cause him to worry. (Submitted by David Kuptana)

For example, their stomachs are nearly empty.

"The bears we used to catch long ago used to be very healthy, very fat," he said. Now, they don't have as much fat. He's worried the open water around his Arctic home is making it hard for them to hunt.

"If they can't find food, they will keep breaking into cabins and looking for something to eat or coming into town," he said.

Kuptana said he also didn't see any polars bears with cubs this year, though he did spot their tracks.

Geoff York, the senior director of research and policy at Polar Bears International, said polar bears are showing up on shore more often because of changes happening out on the sea ice.

"That can definitely give the impression that there are more bears in general, and without question, there are more bears around communities in some cases," he said.

Stroeve said some subpopulations of polar bear may be able to migrate to areas where thick ice may last longer — the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, north of Ellesmere Island, is expected to be one of the those places — but the bears in Hudson Bay don't have that option.

"There's really not any place for those bears to go, in part because the way that the sea ice drifts with the winds," she said.

Climate change brings too long a fasting period, study says

Sea ice is integral to a polar bear's life — it's where they hunt, breed, and raise their young. Stroeve's study looks at how long Hudson Bay will be ice-free in the summer, and whether polar bears will be able to survive the summer fasting period, which is particularly challenging for nursing mothers.

Julienne Stroeve, studying sea ice during an expedition. She is the lead author of a multi-disciplinary study which predicts Hudson Bay polar bears won't be able to survive a lengthening fasting period if climate warming isn't stopped.

Julienne Stroeve, studying sea ice during an expedition. She is the lead author of a multi-disciplinary study which predicts Hudson Bay polar bears won't be able to survive a lengthening fasting period if climate warming isn't stopped. (Lars Barthel)

During that time, polar bears move to land. Though they may find food there, scientists say it doesn't contain enough energy for them to maintain their bodies.

York pointed to a recent study which found the energy polar bears derive from food found on land is barely offset by the energy they expend trying to find it.

Even at 1.6 degrees of warming — which the world is currently teetering on the brink of — Stroeve found that the southern Hudson Bay polar bears may not survive.

Under two degrees of warming, ice free periods in that region are expected to last between 174 to 182 days. Stroeve said most ecologists think polar bears would not be able to survive a fasting period longer than 180 to 200 days long.

The bears in the western region of the bay have a bit more time, because freeze up happens there earlier, she said. Even so, under two degrees of warming, their ice-free period will be 163 to 168 days long.

Accounting for all pledges countries have made to reduce emissions, Stroeve said the planet is still headed for 2.7 degrees of warming by the end of the century. If that happens, she said, there will certainly be no polar bears left in Hudson Bay.

"There's a general sadness that comes along with that," said York.

"The things we need to be doing as societies to help turn this around, reducing greenhouse gas emissions just aren't keeping up with the realities on the ground. We're not doing enough quickly enough."

Bird flu is highly lethal to some animals, but not to others. Scientists want to know why

Mike Stobbe
Fri, June 14, 2024 


NEW YORK (AP) — In the last two years, bird flu has been blamed for the deaths of millions of wild and domestic birds worldwide. It's killed legions of seals and sea lions, wiped out mink farms, and dispatched cats, dogs, skunks, foxes and even a polar bear.

But it seems to have hardly touched people.

That's "a little bit of a head scratcher,” although there are some likely explanations, said Richard Webby, a flu researcher at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. It could have to do with how infection occurs or because species have differences in the microscopic docking points that flu viruses need to take root and multiply in cells, experts say.

But what keeps scientists awake at night is whether that situation will change.

“There's a lot we don't understand,” said Dr. Tom Frieden, a former CDC director who currently heads Resolve to Save Lives, a not-for-profit that works to prevent epidemics. “I think we have to get over the 'hope for the best and bury our head in the sand' approach. Because it could be really bad."

Some researchers theorize that flu viruses that originated in birds were the precursors to terrible scourges in humans, including pandemics in 1918 and 1957. Those viruses became deadly human contagions and spread in animals and people.

A number of experts think it’s unlikely this virus will become a deadly global contagion, based on current evidence. But that's not a sure bet.

Just in case, U.S. health officials are readying vaccines and making other preparations. But they are holding off on bolder steps because the virus isn't causing severe disease in people and they have no strong evidence it’s spreading from person to person.

The flu that's currently spreading — known as H5N1 — was first identified in birds in 1959. It didn’t really begin to worry health officials until a Hong Kong outbreak in 1997 that involved severe human illnesses and deaths.

It has caused hundreds of deaths around the world, the vast majority of them involving direct contact between people and infected birds. When there was apparent spread between people, it involved very close and extended contact within households.

Like other viruses, however, the H5N1 virus has mutated over time. In the last few years, one particular strain has spread alarmingly quickly and widely.

In the United States, animal outbreaks have been reported at dozens of dairy cow farms and more than 1,000 poultry flocks, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Four human infections have been reported among the hundreds of thousands of people who work at U.S. poultry and dairy farms, though that may be an undercount.

Worldwide, doctors have detected 15 human infections caused by the widely circulating bird flu strain. The count includes one death — a 38-year-old woman in southern China in 2022 — but most people had either no symptoms or only mild ones, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

There's no way to know how many animals have been infected, but certain creatures seem to be getting more severe illnesses.

Take cats, for example. Flu is commonly thought of as a disease of the lungs, but the virus can attack and multiply in other parts of the body too. In cats, scientists have found the virus attacking the brain, damaging and clotting blood vessels and causing seizures and death.

Similarly gruesome deaths have been reported in other animals, including foxes that ate dead, infected birds.

The flu strain's ability to lodge in the brain and nervous system is one possible reason for "higher mortality rate in some species,” said Amy Baker, an Iowa-based U.S. Department of Agriculture scientist who studies bird flu in animals. But scientists "just don’t know what the properties of the virus or the properties of the host are that are leading to these differences,” Baker said.

Unlike cats, cows have been largely spared. Illnesses have been reported in less than 10% of the cows in affected dairy herds, according to the USDA. Those that did develop symptoms experienced fever, lethargy, decreased appetite and increased respiratory secretions.

Cow infections largely have been concentrated in the udders of lactating animals. Researchers investigating cat deaths at dairy farms with infected cows concluded the felines caught the virus from drinking raw milk.

Researchers are still sorting out how the virus has been spreading from cow to cow, but studies suggest the main route of exposure is not the kind of airborne droplets associated with coughing and sneezing. Instead it's thought to be direct contact, perhaps through shared milking equipment or spread by the workers who milk them.

Then there's the issue of susceptibility. Flu virus need to be able to latch onto cells before they can invade them.

“If it doesn't get into a cell, nothing happens. ... The virus just swims around,” explained Juergen Richt, a researcher at Kansas State University.

But those docking spots — sialic acid receptors — aren't found uniformly throughout the body, and differ among species. One recent study documented the presence of bird flu-friendly receptors in dairy cattle mammary glands.

Eye redness has been a common symptom among people infected by the current bird flu strain. People who milk cows are eye level with the udders, and splashes are common. Some scientists also note that the human eye has receptors that the virus can bind to.

A study published this month found ferrets infected in the eyes ended up dying, as the researchers demonstrated that the virus could be as deadly entering through the eyes as through the respiratory tract.

Why didn't the same happen in the U.S. farmworkers?

Some experts wonder whether people have some level of immunity, due to past exposure to other forms of flu or to vaccinations. However, a study in which human blood samples were exposed to the virus indicated there's little to no existing immunity to this version of the virus, including among people who'd had seasonal flu shots.

A more menacing question: What happens if the virus mutates in a way that makes it more lethal to people or allows it to spread more easily?

Pigs are a concern because they are considered ideal mixing vessels for bird flu to potentially combine with other flu viruses to create something more dangerous. Baker has been studying the current strain in pigs and found it can replicate in the lungs, but the disease is very mild.

But that could all change, which is why there's a push in the scientific community to ramp up animal testing.

Frieden, of Resolve to Save Lives, noted public health experts have been worried about a deadly new flu pandemic for a long time.

“The only thing predictable about influenza is it's unpredictable,” he said.

___

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Mike Stobbe, The Associated Press

Former CDC director predicts bird flu pandemic

Lauren Irwin
Sat, June 15, 2024 




Former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Robert Redfield said he predicts a bird flu pandemic will happen, it’s just a matter of when that will be.

Redfield joined NewsNation Friday to discuss the growing concern for bird flu, as the virus has been detected in dozens of cattle across the country and the World Health Organization identified the first human death in Mexico.

“I really do think it’s very likely that we will, at some time, it’s not a question of if, it’s more of a question of when we will have a bird flu pandemic,” Redfield said.

He also noted that bird flu has a “significant mortality” when it enters humans compared to COVID-19. Redfield predicts the mortality is “probably somewhere between 25 and 50 percent mortality.” NewsNation noted that the death rate for COVID was 0.6 percent.

At the end of May, the CDC identified the third human case of someone diagnosed with the virus since March. None of the three cases among farmworkers were associated with one another. Symptoms have included a cough without fever and pink eye.

There is no evidence yet that the virus is spreading between humans. Redfield said he knows exactly what has to happen for the virus to get to that point because he’s done lab research on it.

Scientists have found that five amino acids must change in the key receptor in order for bird flu to gain a propensity to bind to a human receptor “and then be able to go human to human” like COVID-19 did, Redfield said.

“Once the virus gains the ability to attach to the human receptor and then go human to human, that’s when you’re going to have the pandemic,” he said. “And as I said, I think it’s just a matter of time.”

Redfield noted that he doesn’t know how long it will take for the five amino acids to change, but since it is being detected in cattle herds across the country, he is a bit concerned.

More than 40 cattle herds nationwide have confirmed cases of the virus. The CDC is tracking wastewater treatment sites to pinpoint where the virus is but the agency said the general public’s current risk of contracting the virus is low.

Since cattle live close to pigs and the virus is able to evolve from pigs to humans, there is cause for concern. Still, he argued, there is greater risk for the disease to be lab-grown.

“I know exactly what amino acids I have to change because in 2012, against my recommendation, the scientists that did these experiments actually published them,” he said. “So, the recipe for how to make bird flu highly infection for humans is already out there.”

Top CDC officials warns US needs ‘more tests’ in face of bird flu fears

Melody Schreiber
Fri, June 14, 2024 

Dr Nirav Shah in Augusta, Maine, on 28 April 2020.Photograph: Robert F Bukaty/AP


There is not enough testing for bird flu among people and animals in the US, says Dr Nirav Shah, principal deputy director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) – but he is wary of pushing the issue and damaging fragile trust among farm workers and owners.

“We would like to be doing more tests,” Shah said. “We’d like to be testing particularly not just symptomatic workers, but anyone on a farm who is exposed.”

But, Shah said, “right now we want to be in a role where we’re building trust with farms and farm workers.”

For the general public, the risk is still low, the CDC says. But the risks are elevated for agricultural workers in close contact with animals – and potentially the people around them.

The CDC is “preparing for the possibility” that the virus could evolve to spread more easily among people, according to a report published on Wednesday.

Shah encouraged the use of personal protective equipment, but stopped short at promising shots for farm workers, who are now the most at risk for getting and spreading H5N1, a highly pathogenic bird flu.

US officials announced last week that a third person tested positive – a farm worker in Michigan who worked closely with sick cows.

Unlike the previous two cases, where conjunctivitis (or “pink eye”) was the only symptom, this patient experienced respiratory symptoms typical for the flu – a cough, congestion, sore throat and watery eyes.

Related: Avian flu said to hit over 40 cattle at Minnesota farm: ‘Only a matter of time’

Shah was quick to point out these symptoms don’t mean the virus is changing. Symptoms like these have been common in the 888 people who have tested positive for H5N1 since 2003.

“This virus, like many viruses, can present in more than one way. And for that reason, we should remain alert, not alarmed,” he said.

But having respiratory symptoms means the individual has more opportunities to pass the virus on to other people, he said, making monitoring and testing even more important than before.

Yet only 44 people have been tested in 2024, according to the CDC.

While officials believe there are probably cases flying under the radar due to the lack of testing, they are closely analyzing data from influenza monitoring systems, and no red flags have been observed yet. “We have not detected any differences in markers, like emergency room visits, in areas with affected herds compared to areas without affected herds,” Shah said.

“Our influenza infrastructure is strong, and it’s notable to discuss the ways in which it differs from our Covid infrastructure,” he said. There are tests available throughout the country, there is a good vaccine candidate for this strain currently being manufactured and the virus monitoring system is already well established.

“That said, we’d love to be doing more,” he continued.

Some states are now testing the blood of dairy farm workers to see how many people have antibodies against H5N1, which would give scientists a better idea of how much the virus is circulating. “We’ve done these studies in poultry [workers] over the years. We’d like to replicate them now in dairy farm workers,” Shah said.

Officials have also expanded the ways people can be tested for H5N1, including eye swabs in test kits to check for conjunctivitis. These eye swabs may now be tested at local labs instead of being sent to the CDC.

“Now we don’t wait until these tests are confirmed [by the CDC] before public health action is taken,” Shah said.

H5N1 continues spreading among farms, including poultry operations, with 4.2 million egg-laying chickens killed on a farm in Iowa after the virus was detected.

In Idaho, alpacas tested positive on 16 May after an outbreak among poultry on the same farm – a sign that the highly pathogenic flu may be spreading from cows to poultry to other livestock, potentially accumulating mutations.

The second person to test positive in the US bird flu outbreak this year showed a mutation that may make the virus spread more among mammals, genetic sequencing revealed.

No genomic analysis of the third case has been announced yet.

While the US Department of Agriculture announced another $824m in funding to protect livestock last week, health officials have not announced additional funds for this outbreak beyond the $101m for the CDC and the Food and Drug Administration (USDA) announced in May.

Part of the USDA funding has included up to $2,000 a month to farms for providing personal protective equipment, or PPE, such as N95 respirators, face shields and goggles.

The CDC has asked states to distribute personal protective equipment to farm workers from their existing supplies as well as from the strategic national stockpile.

“Thankfully, there’s quite a lot of PPE available out there. Now the task is just connecting those who have PPE with those who need it,” Shah said.

But officials are mindful of the inherent difficulties of wearing, for instance, an N95 mask while working on a farm – from the wet nature of dairy farming to summer heat.

“We want our workers to be maximally protected, while at the same time not compromising their health and safety because they’re overheating,” Shah said.

US officials have ordered 4.8m doses of an H5N1 vaccine they say seems well matched to this strain. It takes several months to create flu vaccines, and new formulations like this then go through regulatory processes for authorization or approval.

Officials have shied away from saying who might be prioritized for the vaccines.

“There is not right now a recommendation to vaccinate farm workers,” Shah said. “Of course, it’s under discussion. As scientists, as scientific organizations, we are always discussing what might be coming next and evaluating the pros and cons of that.”

Shah highlighted the importance of community trust in public health, especially since H5N1 is an emerging disease in livestock. Poultry producers, for example, have built up relationships with officials and regulators over decades of bird flu outbreaks.

Trust is “the most important tool that you have in your toolbox in an outbreak setting”, Shah said.

“When H5 became a phenomenon in the poultry industry, it was not overnight that poultry farm owners, operators, as well as workers were ready to work with public health entities – that relationship took time to develop,” Shah said. “The same thing is under way here.”

That means being clear about what testing does and doesn’t entail, and assuring the privacy of workers, he said.

“It’s not something that happens overnight, but we have made progress with farms and farm owners. We want to continue that, rather than trying to overplay our hand and shatter the trust that we’ve created so far.”


From chickens to foxes, here's how bird flu is spreading across the US

Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA TODAY
Sat, June 15, 2024 

A bird flu outbreak that has infiltrated six continents and is wreaking havoc in U.S. farms is among a group of avian influenza flu viruses first described in Italy in 1878 as a "fowl plague."

This outbreak, from a strain that emerged among poultry flocks and wild birds in Europe in the fall of 2020, has been the most pervasive in the U.S. and Europe. Once the highly contagious strain – H5N1 – was identified, it quickly began spreading across Europe and into Africa, the Middle East and Asia. By October 2022, it had been declared the largest avian flu epidemic ever in Europe.

As it spread around the world, it forced the deaths of tens of millions of chickens and turkeys and has killed or sickened thousands of birds, as well as land-based mammals and marine mammals. For now, the risk to people remains low, but the longer it lingers, researchers say, the risk increases that it could evolve into a virus that has greater impact on human health.

Here are some of the key events in the transmission and spread of the virus.
May – July 2021

Wild fox kits at a rehabilitation center in the Netherlands test positive for the virus during an outbreak in wild birds.


Virus found in great skuas – a type of seabird – on Fair Isle, Scotland.
November – December 2021

H5N1 first detected in North America, in poultry and in a great black-backed gull in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.


Four ducks harvested by hunters North and South Carolina test positive for the virus, the first bird flu infection among wild birds in the U.S. since 2016.
January – February 2022

An avian flu infection is reported in an 80-year-old man in England, with no symptoms who raised ducks that became sick in late December.


On Feb. 9, 2022, an outbreak was reported among turkeys at a U.S. commercial poultry facility.


Poultry outbreaks occurring worldwide.


Sea lions dying in Peru test positive for the virus


Virus detections begin occurring at other commercial poultry facilities in the U.S.

Diseases of chickens and other poultry are the focus of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory in Athens, Georgia.
April – September 2022

U.S. reports first human case, possibly the result of contamination of the nasal passages rather than actual infection in a worker culling chickens on a Colorado farm.


Bald eagle die-off underway in the U.S.


Egg prices jump as thousands of chickens euthanized after they are infected with bird flu.


Virus found in at least 88 mammals in the U.S. , including harbor seals, red foxes, skunks and a bottlenose dolphin. Similar detections occurring in Europe and Japan.


Infected cormorants wash up on Martha's Vineyard beaches


Zoos begin moving birds indoors.
Fall 2022

Virus reported in more than two dozen mammals, including a black bear and Kodiak bear in Alaska, and in grizzly bears in Montana and Nebraska, and in a mountain lion.


Two poultry workers in Spain diagnosed with the virus.
2023

Bird flu spillover into mammals continues. Several human cases reported internationally.

By February, more than 50 million chickens have been affected in the U.S., in what has become one of the largest bird flu outbreaks in recorded history.


Study finds bird flu killing many bald eagles.


In April, wildlife officials report California condors die at alarming rate.


A dog died after chewing on a wild goose in Canada.


In December, the first detections are reported in both polar regions. A dead polar bear in Alaska tests positive for the virus, a first for polar bears and for the Arctic. Virus also found in elephant and fur seals in the Antarctic.

Endangered California condors are among the species that contracted the H5N1 bird flu. More than a dozen died before the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service oversaw development of a vaccine that was successfully used to treat them.
March – April 2024

Viral infections occur for the first time in juvenile goats on a Minnesota farm where a poultry flock tested positive.


Virus found for the first time in dairy cows, at farms in Kansas and Texas. Later research suggests it was circulating since December, likely after introduction by a wild bird to a Texas cattle farm.


Testing of food products ramps up.


Virus found in unpasteurized clinical samples of milk at two Kansas dairy farms and one in Texas.


Fragments of the virus found in pasteurized milk, but aren't considered dangerous.


A farm worker in Texas tests positive for the virus, with conjunctivitis but not a respiratory infection, after coming into close contact with infected cows. It's the second human case in the U.S. and the first reported cow-to-human spread of H5N1 bird flu.
May 2024

Michigan dairy farm worker tests positive for the virus, with conjunctivitis symptoms.


Infection reported in another farm worker in the U.S., and this time the patient has respiratory symptoms, which healthcare researchers find more concerning. It's the fourth reported human case, the third by exposure to dairy cows.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Bird flu in the US: A full timeline

Markets fear the French far right could trigger a financial crisis

Olesya Dmitracova, CNN
Fri, June 14, 2024

Investors are worried France could be facing a financial crisis if the political center collapses in upcoming parliamentary elections, leaving far-right populists in charge of the European Union’s second-biggest economy.

President Emmanuel Macron called the snap elections Sunday after his party lost to the far right in a vote for EU lawmakers, a shock move that rattled markets for French stocks and government bonds.

There has been widespread speculation since then that the National Rally, the party of far-right doyenne Marine Le Pen, is poised to become the most powerful force in parliament, unseating Macron’s centrist bloc.

Such an outcome could make it harder to reduce France’s huge government debt pile, equal to 110.6% of gross domestic product at the end of last year, and could even add to it. A bitterly divided parliament would also struggle to cut the budget deficit — the gap between government spending and tax receipts — which reached 5.5% of GDP last year.


“If Le Pen calls the shots in parliament and pursues major parts of her expensive fiscal and protectionist ‘France first’ agenda, the result could be a Liz Truss-style financial crisis,” Berenberg economists wrote in a note Friday, adding that, for now, this was “a serious risk, not a forecast.”

The British pound and UK government bonds sold off sharply in September 2022 after former Prime Minister Truss unveiled plans to increase borrowing to pay for tax cuts. Mortgage rates soared as investors demanded much higher premiums for owning UK debt. Truss resigned soon after, becoming the shortest-serving prime minister in British history.

The risk of something similar happening in France is real, according to the country’s finance minister, Bruno Le Maire.

Asked Friday on franceinfo, a French radio station, whether the political turmoil triggered by Macron’s decision to call the snap elections could lead to a financial crisis, Le Maire replied “yes.”

He noted that France now has to pay a higher interest rate than Portugal — one of the countries bailed out during the European debt crisis more than a decade ago — to borrow from investors. “This comes down to the (parties’) plans that are on the table, whether we can, yes or no, finance this debt,” Le Maire said.

Credit ratings agencies are already keeping a close eye on France, one of the EU’s three most-indebted countries. In May, S&P downgraded the country’s long-term credit score to AA-, citing the “deterioration of (its) budgetary position,” though it still thought France had ample capacity to repay its debts. The agency said it expected the budget deficit to narrow to 3.5% of GDP in 2027, well above the 2.9% targeted by the current government.

Markets are already roiled by the prospect of political upheaval. The yield, or the interest rate sought by investors, on France’s benchmark 10-year government bonds stood at 3.17% on Friday afternoon in Europe, compared with 3.15% for the Portuguese equivalent.

In another sign of traders’ jitters, the premium they demand to hold French government bonds instead of the ultra-safe AAA-rated German equivalents rose Thursday to its highest level since 2017. The spread was widening even further Friday.

French President Emmanuel Macron speaks during the G7 summit in Italy on June 13, 2024. - Ludovic Marin/AFP/Getty Images

Stock markets haven’t escaped. On Friday, France’s benchmark of 40 leading stocks fell much more than similar German and pan-European indexes. The euro has sagged this week too.

An Elabe opinion poll for CNN affiliate BFMTV and La Tribune Dimanche showed Wednesday that Macron’s centrist bloc was on track to come only third in the first round of the elections on June 30, far behind the National Rally and an alliance of left-wing parties.

The National Rally has promised to raise public spending and slash VAT on electricity and fuel. Le Maire said Friday that markets’ response to such measures would be: “I’m sorry but you don’t have the means to afford these expenses.”

Likewise, speaking on a webinar Thursday, Frank Gill, a senior specialist in European sovereign ratings at S&P Global Ratings, said the policies advocated by the National Rally “could further drag on public finances” and “would be a consideration for the sovereign rating.”

And Moody’s said in a note Monday that the snap elections increased the risks to fiscal consolidation in France, “a credit negative.”

The European Central Bank “would have the means to prevent any genuine crisis” in the French government bond market, a Berenberg note said earlier this week. But “akin to the sequence of events in the erstwhile euro crisis, the ECB may only deploy its instruments — or announce that it could do so — if and when the country in question has returned to sounder fiscal policies.”

Joseph Ataman in Paris and Mark Thompson in London contributed reporting.

B.C. coal mining company fined for more than 400 violations

CBC
Fri, June 14, 2024 

Conuma Resources Limited has received three penalties totaling $45,850 for violating environmental regulations at its Brule coal mine near Tumbler Ridge, B.C. (X/B.C. Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy - image credit)


A B.C. coal mining company in northeastern B.C. has been fined more than $45,000 for repeated violations of the province's environmental protection rules, including the failure to monitor mine waste into fish-bearing water and failure to limit particulate being put into the air.

Conuma Resources Limited is a metallurgical coal mining company operating in the Tumbler Ridge area in northeastern B.C., roughly 660 kilometres directly northeast of Vancouver.

It mines coal from to produce carbon used in steelmaking at three different sites in the region, employing approximately 900 people.


In documents posted online, the B.C. Ministry of Environment and Climate Change argued the company repeatedly and knowingly failed to comply with environmental regulations, limiting the amount of particulate put into the air by mining operations, and failed to monitor waste water put into local waterways on more than 400 separate occasions.

The violations were said to have occurred at the company's Brule Mine site between 2020 and 2023, after Conuma had already received several notices and warnings for previous violations, the report says.

The total penalties amount to $45,850 and must be paid within 30 days of receipt.

Air quality violations

On the issue of particulate, a report from the ministry says Conuma has failed to properly set up its operations to prevent excessive amounts of dust and discharge from entering the surrounding air, exceeding provincial limits on dozens of occasions over multiple years.

However, the company argued that wildfires in the region, as well as slash-burning from nearby forestry operations, were also contributing factors and it should not be held solely responsible.

The West Kiskatinaw River wildfire in northeast B.C. in a photo posted by the B.C. Wildfire Service.

Environmental Management Act director Jason Bourgeois ruled that while Conuma had failed to properly limit the amount of particulate being released into the airshed, wildfires played a contributing factor on some dates and the proposed penalty was reduced. (B.C. Wildfire Service)

Environmental Management Act director Jason Bourgeois agreed, and removed some of violations from the final ruling.

However, he did rule that Conuma did violate the rules on multiple other occasions, despite warnings, and ordered a total penalty for air quality violations of $4,750, down from the original $22,000 initially proposed by the ministry.

Water monitoring

Conuma was not as successful in reducing its penalty for its failure to comply with water monitoring, which was ruled to have occurred on 406 separate dates between Oct. 21, 2020 and Jan. 1 2023, for which Bourgeois applied a base penalty of $10,000.

Conuma discharges effluent from its operations into ponds that lead into creeks and a river that are home to several species of fish. As a result, it is supposed to sample toxin levels from its operations, have them be tested for compliance and regularly share that information with provincial officials.

The ministry reported and Bourgeois agreed that Conuma had failed to follow these rules multiple times over several years.

The researchers exposed rainbow trout to "sub-lethal" levels of fracking chemicals.

Rainbow trout are among several fish species living in waterways into which effluent from mining operations near Tumbler Ridge is discharged. (Fish World )

Bourgeois ruled that while Conuma has since taken some steps to comply with the rules, they had repeatedly failed to collect and test samples, despite knowing they were meant to do so. For this, he added an additional penalty of $3,000.

He also agreed with the ministry report that Conuma benefited economically from this, by not having to pay for the labour or shipping costs associated with the work. For this, he applied an additional penalty of $32,700.

Another $3,000 was deducted for the work Conuma has done since to address the violations, for a total of $42,700, adjusted down to the maximum penalty of $40,000 for water monitoring violations.

Bourgeois also noted that he could have applied a $40,000 fine to each of the violations but opted to lump them together as it was the first ruling against the company.

On top of the air quality and water monitoring fines, an additional $1,100 fine was issued for failure to submit monthly reports and upload data on water quality monitoring.

Singh won't break NDP pact with Liberals despite concern PM isn't protecting democracy

Mickey Djuric
Fri, June 14, 2024



OTTAWA — Federal New Democrat Leader Jagmeet Singh is not willing to break ranks with the minority Liberal government, even after criticizing the prime minister for failing to protect Canada's democracy.

Singh said the evidence from a recent spy watchdog report shows Justin Trudeau is willing to accept some level of foreign interference, which weakens democracy and undermines the confidence of Canadians.

He made those comments Thursday after reviewing a national security committee's unredacted report that said a number of MPs have knowingly provided help to foreign governments — information Trudeau has had for months.


"He may disagree with that intelligence, but I believe he has not taken the steps he should have to deal with this," Singh said. "He has sent the message that he is willing to accept some level of foreign interference."

The report drew from highly classified intelligence, which does not paint a full picture, and does not equate to proof.

If Singh really has concerns Trudeau is failing to protect democracy, he must pull his support from the Liberals and let them face Canadians in an election, a spokesperson for the Opposition Conservatives charged.

But Singh signalled his party will not walk away from the confidence-and-supply deal that is keeping the minority government in power.

"The suggestion that an election is a solution to election interference is, I think, a fallacy," Singh said.

Several investigations have found that foreign interference did not threaten Canada's ability to have free and fair elections in 2019 and 2021. That includes the interim report from a commission of inquiry that is currently examining allegations of foreign interference in the two votes.

Still, the intelligence community views Canada as a permissive environment for foreign actors to pursue their strategic interests.

The New Democrats will continue to use existing tools available to parliamentarians to find solutions to combat foreign interference, Singh said, but he did not specify what will be done.

The Liberal government has undertaken various measures to protect Canada's democracy from foreign interference, the National Security Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians found in its report last week.

But it concluded that those measures haven't been effective enough, and there is a persistent disconnect between the gravity of the threat in Canada and the efforts to counter it.

The committee said it believes that gap is why foreign governments — such as those of China and India — continue to view Canadian elections and institutions as easy targets to advance their agenda.

Singh was the second opposition party leader to view an unredacted version of the report, after the Green Party's Elizabeth May. The head of the Bloc Québécois said he would seek a briefing, while Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has declined to pursue the required security clearance.

"I was glad Mr. Singh accepted the government offer to read the report, I wish Mr. Poilievre would do the same thing," Democratic Institutions Minister Dominic LeBlanc said on Friday in Moncton, N.B.

He said the best way to reassure Canadians about foreign interference allegations surrounding some unnamed parliamentarians is to allow the judge who is leading an independent inquiry to examine the intelligence.

Intelligence is a long way from proof, LeBlanc said, and added he thinks it's "very dangerous" to talk about naming names without having "a higher degree of reliability."

A wide-ranging government bill on foreign interference is before the Senate after passing in the House of Commons this week.

The legislation would introduce new criminal provisions against deceptive or surreptitious acts, establish a foreign influence transparency registry and allow for the sharing of sensitive information with businesses and others beyond government.

The government said it hopes the bill will pass before Parliament's summer break.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 14, 2024.

Mickey Djuric, The Canadian Press



Trudeau still mum on whether Liberals among "witting" MPs who helped foreign states

The Canadian Press
Sat, June 15, 2024 


SAVELLETRI DI FASANO — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau would not say Saturday whether Liberal MPs are among those accused in a recent spy watchdog report of helping foreign states.

The refusal comes after NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and Green Party Leader Elizabeth May have both offered new, though somewhat conflicting insight into the findings of the National Security and Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians.

The intelligence watchdog, composed of MPs and senators, said in a public report last week that some parliamentarians are "semi-witting or witting" participants in the efforts of foreign states to meddle in Canadian politics.

May says there is no suggestion that sitting MPs have put the interest of foreign states over Canada, but Singh says a number of members have provided help to foreign governments.

"I will allow Mr. Singh and Ms. May to speak for themselves," Trudeau said when asked why the prime minister could not shed similar light on the unredacted findings.

Singh said previously that if the full report showed any New Democrat MP knowingly took part in meddling, he would remove them from caucus. He indicated Thursday, after reading it, that he would not be taking such action.

Trudeau was asked about whether any members of his party are named in the report, but would only say that concerns raised in the report have been referred to a national inquiry into foreign interference.

"I think it's important that Canadians have confidence in our ability, collectively as a democracy, to defend the institutions and the processes around our elections and our democracy. That is why officials are engaging with the foreign interference inquiry to see how they can follow up on the NSICOP report," Trudeau said.

While Trudeau said he disagreed with the way the committee drew its conclusions, he took credit for his government's creation of the committee and said he welcomes the members' work.

"The National Security Intelligence Committee of Parliamentarians exists so that parliamentarians from all parties can have full access to the work that our national security agencies are doing. That's an important step that wouldn't have happened if the Conservative Party had remained in power," he said.

Trudeau made the comments at the conclusion of the G7 summit in Italy, where leaders said they are more concerned than ever about foreign interference and plan to create a “collective response framework” to counter foreign threats to democracies.

The framework is expected by the end of the year and will include publicly exposing “foreign operations of information manipulation," the leaders said in a joint communique released Friday.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is the only federal political party leader who has not taken steps to acquire the security clearance needed to read the full report. The Conservatives have said if he were to read the report he would be sworn to secrecy about its contents, which would prevent the leader from taking any action.

Poilievre instead called on the government to publicly release the names of MPs accused in the report.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 15, 2024.

The Canadian Press

Stolen Titian painting found at London bus stop put up for auction

Maroosha Muzaffar
Fri, 14 June 2024 

Tim Moore, general manager of Lord Bath’s Longleat Estate, with the recovered Titian painting, which is now being put up for auction (Sean Dempsey/PA)

A renowned painting by Renaissance master Titian called Rest on the Flight into Egypt is being auctioned by Christie’s in London next month and is expected to fetch as much £15-£25m.

Made in 1508, the two-foot-wide wooden panel depicting the Virgin Mary with baby Jesus and Joseph was purchased by the 4th Marquess of Bath in 1878.

Titian, born Tiziano Vecellio, created the artwork at the beginning of his career in the early 1500s when he was in his “late teens or barely 20 years old”.

The painting has a storied past. It was looted by Napoleon’s soldiers and stolen from Longleat, only to later be found at a London bus stop.

Christie’s describes it as a cherished piece sought after by nobility and with a rich, ongoing journey through history.

“This is a painting, then, that has been coveted by aristocrats, archdukes and emperors alike: prized for its vividly coloured scene of familial affection within the natural world,” the auction house said in the statement.

“Like its subjects, The Rest on the Flight into Egypt has been on a long and eventful journey — a journey that’s far from over.”

The artwork has been stolen twice. First in 1809 by Napoleon’s troops from Belvedere Palace in Vienna and then in 1995 from Longleat House, Wiltshire.

After a seven-year search, it was found in a plastic bag at a London bus stop by Charles Hill, former head of Scotland Yard’s art and antiques unit.

Hill, who died in 2021, found the painting following a tip-off in exchange for a £100,000 reward. He was also known for recovering Edvard Munch’s The Scream after it was stolen in 1994.

Surrealism at 100: Giovanni Guida explores hidden depths with innovative grattage

Katy Dartford
Thu, 13 June 2024 


Surrealism at 100: Giovanni Guida explores hidden depths with innovative grattage

As the art world celebrates the centenary of Surrealism in 2024, one Italian artist has been making waves lately for his unique approach to painting that pays homage to the tradition, echoing the pioneering techniques of Max Ernst and Spanish surrealist painter, Remedios Varo.

Giovanni Guida, born in 1992 in Acerra near Naples, is the youngest artist to be included in major encyclopaedias for using the 'grattage' technique, a method of scratching a, still-wet, painting to reveal underlying layers. "The goal is to remove the chromatic pigment to make the primordial colour below resurface," Guida explains.

This method, first developed by Ernst, allows Guida to delve into the subconscious, revealing hidden emotions and memories. Guida first came across this method in 2005 when he was studying painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Naples. His tutor Mariarosaria Castellano taught him to use his nails, almost like claws, to tear the "skin" of the painting, reaching its "bowels."

Guida innovated Ernst's use of brushes and spatulas to scrape, using new tools and everyday objects, such as scalpels, blades, wire brushes, stilettos and sponges, alongside his hands.

100 years of Surrealism

Born out of the earlier Dada movement, Surrealism was officially founded in 1924 in Paris by André Breton, who penned the Surrealist Manifesto that year. However, the term "Surrealist" was first used in 1903 by Guillaume Apollinaire in the preface to his play Les Mamelles de Tirésias (The Breasts of Tiresias).

The Dada movement that emerged during World War I, was an avant-garde, anti-establishment artistic and literary movement that rejected traditional aesthetic standards and embraced chaos, irrationality, and absurdity. It was a form of protest against the societal and cultural norms that the artists believed had led to the war.

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Surrealists added to this Sigmund Freud’s theories of dreams and the unconscious aiming to liberate creativity from the constraints of logic and societal norms. They experimented with automatic writing and drawing to tap into the subconscious mind.

Max Ernst, a German Dadaist, was crucial to the emergence of Surrealism. Moving to Paris in 1922, Ernst brought with him his innovative collage work, which fueled Breton's imagination. Ernst's techniques, including frottage and grattage, involved using textured surfaces to create spontaneous art. His 1927 painting Forest and Dove exemplified these methods.

Although it waned as an organised movement, Surrealism's impact on painting, sculpture, literature, photography, and film has endured, influencing countless artists and movements that followed.

Ernst and Guida

Ernst's influence on Guida's work is profound. "Ernst was fundamental to my studies to free creative forces rich in suggestions and evocations, less theoretical and more unconscious and spontaneous," he says. His concept of art as a product of the unconscious mind resonates deeply with Guida, who also admires Remedios Varo for her unique style and themes of escape and rebellion. These inspirations can be seen in the surreal landscapes and mystical themes of Guida's paintings.

The artistic relationship between Ernst and the Surrealist painter Leonora Carrington has also deeply influenced Guida's use of grattage and frottage. "Their strong vital impulses translate into 'artistic sublimation' through pictorial gestures," he explains, seeing their work as a mystical elevation that informs his creative process.

Guida says he is inviting viewers to explore multiple levels of meaning, from reality to the unconscious and the sacred; "Dreams and reality, transcendence and immanence, rationality and fantasy in my paintings are always interconnected".

As the world marks the centenary of surrealism, Guida sees his work as part of this broader artistic legacy. "Imagination, unconsciousness, and automatic writing are words we must reflect in 2024," he says. He hopes this will deepen the understanding of surrealist techniques and their relevance today.

Tearing the Veil

Giovanni Guida grew up admiring frescoes and paintings in Neapolitan churches and the works of Caravaggio and Masaccio, an Italian Renaissance painter famous for The Crucifixion, Guida's faith also marks his art form, which has influenced his use of Christian iconography in his work.

He notes that his tactile and symbolic approach alludes to the tearing of the temple's veil in Jerusalem when Jesus died, "a metaphor for unveiling the sacred," he explains, and a symbol of the separation between humanity and God.

Some of Guida's most famous pieces include Dionysus (2017) Apotheosis (2015) And you will heal from all diseases... and I will take care of You, (2020) created during the Covid-19 pandemic. 'Apotheosis of Dante Alighieri in Florence: the Love that moves the sun and the other stars,' was created for the 700th anniversary of the Florentine poet's death.

The sacred is also stressed in his use of Lapis Lazuli blue, a “heavenly” Byzantine blue, that "carries a divine force that transcends the human,” explains the painter. The artist was not the first to use Lapis Lazuli; the pigment was also used by Michelangelo to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

Guida's grattage technique is also influenced by Schopenhauer and Heidegger's philosophies, seeking to unveil the essence of things. "The veil falls forever and lets you see what is hiding," he says, invoking Heidegger's concept of alétheia, or truth as "not hidden."

Guida believes his art bridges tradition and innovation, resonating with both contemporary and traditional audiences. "Cultural references, tradition, and innovation marry thanks to a mind capable of 'thinking globally'," he explains, emphasising the fluidity of knowledge and art in our "liquid society."

Giovanni Guida with the pictorial cycle 'Temples of the soul' - Giovanni Guida

World Encyclopaedias

Being included in the world's encyclopaedias for his use of grattage is a milestone for Guida, as it cements his significance in the contemporary art scene. Of his recent mention in Deutsche Biographies, a German-language biographical dictionary, he says it "allows me to activate a metacognitive activity during the Ernst period in Germany," drawing parallels between Ernst's experiences and his artistic journey.

As well as the Deutsche Biographie, Guida's name appears in encyclopedias, such as the structured vocabulary of art and artists (Vocabulary Union List of Artist Names) of the Getty Conservation Institute in Los Angeles, the Italian Encyclopedia of Sciences, Letters, and Arts (La Treccani), the Encyclopedia Sapere (De Agostini), Encyklopedia PWN of Poland, and Nationalencyklopedin, the most comprehensive contemporary encyclopedia in Swedish. He also features in the records of major national libraries like the Library of Congress in Washington and the National Library of Paris.

Beyond grattage

Guida is also experimenting with other techniques like fumage, decalcomania, and aerosol art. These methods, he believes, reduce the artist's role to that of a spectator, enhancing the mind's hallucinations and allowing the artwork to emerge organically.

While Guida has upcoming exhibitions, he emphasises the importance of experiencing his art beyond the canvas. "I would like people to remember not to adhere to the present necessarily but to open up and live the 'distance'," he says, inviting viewers to go beyond conventional perspectives and embrace the totality of the experience.

Looking ahead, Guida aspires to transcend the art world's conventional boundaries: "Enter not into the world and systems of art, but into the truth of the mystery of art," he says. He envisions an art that goes beyond form, regenerating itself in relationships and social 

Canada sanctions Summit Series goalie Vladislav Tretiak

CBC
Thu, June 13, 2024 

1972 Team Canada's Paul Henderson is greeted by 1972 Soviet team goalkeeper Vladislav Tretiak as he is inducted at the IIHF Hall of Fame at the world hockey championship in Stockholm, Sweden on Sunday, May 19, 2013. (Jacques Boissinot/The Canadian Press - image credit)

Canada has levelled sanctions against an icon of the 1972 Summit Series between Canada and the Soviet Union.

Vladislav Tretiak — the goaltender for the Soviet Union in the 1972 series against Canada that captivated hockey fans in both countries — is among 11 people sanctioned by the federal government over Russia's ongoing war on Ukraine.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's office announced the new sanctions package on Thursday during the G7 summit in Italy. The war in Ukraine is a major topic on the G7 agenda.


The sanctions target 11 people and 16 entities who "supply key technology and electrical components in support of Russia's war of aggression," the Prime Minister's Office said in a news release.

The sanctions also target individuals and entities "implicated in disinformation and propaganda operations," the news release said.

"Today's newest sanctions reflect our long-standing efforts to disrupt [Russian President Vladimir] Putin's ability to wage Russia's illegal war, including by conducting gross disinformation campaigns," Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said in a separate news release.

Tretiak, 72, is the president of the Ice Hockey Federation of Russia. CBC News reached out to Global Affairs Canada on Thursday to ask why he was sanctioned.

On Friday afternoon, a Global Affairs spokesperson said that Tretiak was actually first sanctioned in February 2023 because he voted in Russia's lower house of parliament in favour of legislation related to the invasion of Ukraine. But he was listed with the wrong birth date.

He was re-listed on Thursday with the correct date of birth.

Canada has issued sanctions against hundreds of Russian individuals and entities since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Tretiak gained international fame after Summit Series

Tretiak is regarded as one of hockey's greatest goalies. He was one of the most notable players in the 1972 Summit Series that saw Canada narrowly beat the Soviet Union. Canada won the series in the final game thanks to a last-minute goal by forward Paul Henderson.

Tretiak later went on to star for the Soviet Union in international play, winning two Olympic gold medals and playing in the 1976 Canada Cup.

Team Canada's Paul Henderson (left) shoots on Team USSR's Vladislav Tretiak while Gannady Tsygankov defends during the 1972 Summit tournament in Toronto on Sept. 4, 1972.

Team Canada's Paul Henderson (left) shoots on Team USSR's Vladislav Tretiak while Gannady Tsygankov defends during the 1972 Summit tournament in Toronto on Sept. 4, 1972. (Peter Bregg/The Canadian Press)

The Montreal Canadiens drafted Tretiak in 1983, but the Soviet government would not let him leave the country to play in the NHL.

After his retirement as a player, he worked for the Chicago Blackhawks as a part-time goaltending coach for 15 years. He also ran a goaltending school in Toronto.

Russia banned from international play

The International Ice Hockey Federation has barred Russia and Belarus from international competition over Russia's war on Ukraine.

Earlier this year, the organization renewed the ban through the 2024-25 season, saying "it is not yet safe to reincorporate the Russian and Belarusian teams back into IIHF competitions."

Ice hockey is a favourite sport of President Putin.

Trudeau to focus on return of stolen children at Ukraine peace talks

Nojoud Al Mallees
Sat, June 15, 2024 


OBERKIRCH — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau plans to shine a spotlight on the plight of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia and call for their safe return while attending a summit dedicated to establishing peace between the two countries.

G7 leaders wrapped up their summit in Italy on Saturday, where Canada was heavily involved in a U.S.-led push to use frozen Russian assets to secure a US$50-billion loan to help Ukraine in its fight against Russian invaders.

Canada has pledged $5 billion toward that loan.

Trudeau arrived in Switzerland for the peace talks hours later, alongside delegations from about 90 countries, to discuss a path toward ending the war with Russia.

"We'll work with partners on a plan to achieve a comprehensive, just and lasting peace for Ukraine," the prime minister said at a press conference in Italy at the end of the G7 summit.

The summit began with an opening plenary featuring remarks from 26 leaders.

"Of course, we are aware that there is a long path ahead of us. We are under no illusion that we will reach a conclusive understanding at this summit," said Swiss President Viola Amherd.

"But we can come closer to reaching such an understanding word by word, proposal by proposal step by step."

The conference on Saturday and Sunday is seen largely as a symbolic effort on the part of Kyiv to rally the international community to Ukraine's cause.

Russia and its key ally China will not attend the peace talks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s government didn’t want Russia involved, but the Swiss insist that Russia must be involved at some point, and hope it will join the process one day.

"We are all aware that the peace process without Russia is inconceivable. a lasting solution must involve both parties. As an international community, we can help to pave the way," said Amherd.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed Russia's absence from the table during the opening plenary.

"Now, there is no Russia here. Why? Because if Russia was interested in peace, there would be no war," he said.

Zelenskyy said the international community must decide on what a "just peace" looks like, using the United Nations charter as its basis. Only then can Russia be brought into the process, he said.

When pressed on what impact the talks will have without Russia's participation, Trudeau said the summit is part of the process toward peace.

"We need to see peace and stability in Ukraine, as we need to see it around the world, and this is part of the effort that we all undertake to engage," he said.

"I'm going to be focusing in particular on the issue of children stolen from Ukraine by Russia who need to be returned."

At the request of Zelenskyy, Trudeau will co-chair a session on the human dimension of the war alongside Norway. The session is expected to touch on prisoners of war, civilian detainees and deported children.

Several families shared stories about their children's captivity and desperate bid to escape with the House of Commons subcommittee on international human rights last year, in hopes that Canadian parliamentarians would help rescue others.

It is unclear how many children have been taken to Russia or territories it controls in Ukraine, but Save the Children told the committee in November that Ukrainian and Russian estimates of that number in November ranged from 2,000 to 20,000.

Several teens told the committee about being separated from their families and forcibly taken from Ukraine to camps in Russia or Russian-occupied territories during their testimony by video conference from Ukraine.

G7 leaders focused heavily on Ukraine during their summit, but the host country, Italy, promised the Israel-Hamas war and humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip would be an equally significant topic of discussion.

The summit ended without any joint pledge to take specific action to address the situation in the Middle East.

"G7 leaders are united in wanting to see implementation of the US and UN peace plan, the immediate ceasefire, the return of all hostages," Trudeau said.

"We underscored repeatedly the need to continue delivering humanitarian assistance, as we all are."

India, which has avoided criticizing Russia since its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, is expected to take part in the peace talks this weekend. Trudeau had a brief conversation with the country's newly re-elected Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G7, but wouldn't elaborate on their discussion.

It was the first time the two leaders have crossed paths since Trudeau publicly accused Modi's government of being involved in the killing of a Sikh activist, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in British Columbia.

"There's important but sensitive issues that we need to follow up on, but this was a commitment to work together in the coming times to deal with some very important issues," Trudeau said.

Canada has been named the host for next year's G7 summit, which will be held in Kananaskis, Alta.

Trudeau would not say if he planned to invite Modi to those meetings.

The prime minister held a bilateral meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni following the news conference on Saturday morning, hailing her leadership at the summit.

The tone of the meeting was much friendlier than the bilateral meeting the two leaders held at the G7 summit last year in Japan, where Trudeau called out the Italian government's stance on LGBTQ2S+ rights.

Meloni’s right-wing government this week worked to water down references to abortion in the final statement issued by all the G7 nations at the end of the summit, prompting a disagreement between nations over language in the final draft of their shared commitments.

That is according to two senior U.S. officials, a senior European Union official and two other officials who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to talk about the discussions over the statement that were not made public.

The final statement, released Friday, omits the word “abortion” but does reference the need to promote “reproductive health and rights.”

When asked how Trudeau could sign the communique without the explicit mention of abortion, given his government's advocacy on the issue, the prime minister said there were "clear commitments" in the communique for sexual and reproductive rights.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 15, 2024.

-- With files from The Associated Press and Laura Osman in Ottawa

Nojoud Al Mallees, The Canadian Press