Trump tariff war ramps up as Canada retaliates and UK says 'all options' open
Summary
Canada announces retaliatory tariffs on more than $20bn (C$29.8bn) worth of US goods after Donald Trump's 25% tariffs on steel and aluminium came into effect
The tariffs include steel products worth C$12.6bn, as well as sports equipment, computers and cast iron goods
Secretary of State Marco Rubio says tariffs are not there to "punish" other countries, but steel and aluminium are "national security concerns" for the US
It comes as the European Union says it will impose counter-measures on €26bn ($28.3bn) worth of US goods in a "strong but proportionate" response
Prime Minister Keir Starmer says the UK will "keep all options on the table" and is pushing for a trade deal
China says it will take "all necessary measures" to safeguard its rights and interests, while Canada's high commissioner to the UK criticises the "lawless trade world of Donald Trump"
What are tariffs, who do they hit and why is Trump using them? We answer those questions and more here
Greenland election: opposition Democrat party wins surprise victory amid spectre of Trump
Centre-right party wins most votes ahead of the Naleraq party, with coalition talks expected to begin
Wed 12 Mar 2025 09.42 GMT
Greenland has voted for a complete overhaul of its government in a shock result in which the centre-right Democrat party more than tripled its seats after a dramatic election campaign fought against the backdrop of Donald Trump’s threats to acquire the Arctic island.
Tuesday’s election, in which the Democrats replaced Inuit Ataqatigiit (IA), the party of the former prime minister Múte B Egede, as the biggest party in the Inatsisartut, the Greenlandic parliament, also led to a doubling of seats for Naleraq – the party most open to US collaboration and which supports a snap vote on independence – making it the second-biggest party.
Both the Democrats and the second-placed party, Naleraq, favour independence from Denmark but they differ on the pace of change. Naleraq is the most aggressively pro-independence, while the Democrats favour a more moderate pace.
COVID pandemic likely unleashed by lab mishap: Germany's BND
Germany's spy agency thinks an accident in a Chinese lab likely led to the COVID-19 pandemic, media say. Evidence it collected allegedly indicates negligence at the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
Germany's foreign intelligence service, the BND, concluded that the outbreak of the worldwide coronavirus pandemic in 2020 could well have been triggered by an accident at a Chinese laboratory that does virus research, German media reported on Wednesday.
The pandemic caused the death of millions of people across the world from the respiratory illness COVID-19, while fallout from the catastrophe continues to dog global economies and drive social tensions.
Jaffar Express hijacking: State media reports 190 rescued, 2nd day of operation underway in Balochistan
Security forces have rescued at least 190 passengers and killed 30 terrorists as a rescue operation continues into its second day after terrorists hijacked the Jaffar Express train near Balochistan’s Bolan district, state media said on Wednesday.
The unprecedented hostage situation began on Tuesday near the Mashkaf Tunnel, about 157 kilometres from Quetta, when terrorists attacked the Jaffar Express and took more than 400 passengers hostage, including numerous security personnel.
Israel’s power cuts, aid blockade on Gaza ongoing; Qatar hosts talks
- Israel’s total blockade of the Gaza Strip is on the 11th day, with no food, fuel or medicine allowed to cross into the territory.
- As deadly Israeli attacks continue, Hamas announces start of a “new round of negotiations”, with US envoy Steve Witkoff also arriving in Qatar for the talks.
- The families of some Israeli captives being held in Gaza have called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reinstate electricity supplies to Gaza, according to Israeli media.
Total economic collapse as basic supplies run out in besieged Gaza
The situation is very difficult right now.
For the 11th day in a row, people are basically running out of options. More than half of the charitable kitchens in the Gaza Strip are closing down right now because they are running out of basic supplies and goods to simply prepare meals for people who are largely fasting for the month of Ramadan.
So people are being forced to break their fast on whatever they are able to get their hands on – nothing fancy, just whatever is available, basic stuff that soon enough are going to run out as well.
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