Uzbekistan and Jordan Agree on Uranium and Mineral Exploration
Uzbekistan and Jordan have signed agreements to cooperate in exploring uranium, copper, rare metals, and other critical mineral deposits....
Air Canada and the union representing 10,000 striking flight attendants resumed initial talks on Monday night, the first contact in nearly a week, according to a statement from the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE).
The walkout, which began Saturday after contract talks broke down, has disrupted travel for hundreds of thousands of passengers. Despite the Canada Industrial Relations Board declaring the strike illegal, CUPE has refused to return to work. The latest discussions are taking place in Toronto with mediator William Kaplan, the union confirmed on Facebook.
Before the meeting, the two sides had not spoken since the strike began. Sources told Reuters that talks include whether to enter formal mediation-on the condition that flight attendants go back to work.
Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu has urged both sides to reach a settlement quickly. Air Canada CEO Mike Rousseau defended the airline’s compensation proposal, saying it would increase pay by 38%, though he acknowledged a “big gap” remains with the union’s demands. Hours later, Hajdu escalated pressure by launching a probe into airline pay practices, saying a negotiated deal would deliver the “best outcome.”
The union, however, has stood firm, insisting the strike will continue until pay and unpaid work issues are addressed. Flight attendants want higher wages and payment for time spent on boarding and ground duties, which currently goes unpaid. Hajdu said she was surprised by the allegations of unpaid labour and has ordered an investigation into the wider airline sector.
Union leaders said they are prepared to risk jail rather than accept a back-to-work order. Rousseau called the strike unlawful and damaging to customers and the company’s reputation but said Air Canada remains open to dialogue. The airline claims its four-year offer represents a 17.2% pay increase, while CUPE says that is not enough.
Prime Minister Mark Carney appealed for a resolution, warning that “hundreds of thousands of Canadians and visitors” were being caught up in the dispute. The strike, now in its third day, has forced Air Canada to suspend its financial guidance for the year and sent its shares down nearly 3%. The carrier, which flies about 130,000 people daily as part of Star Alliance, is already under pressure from reduced U.S. bookings.
Passenger frustration is also mounting. Some, such as Winnipeg resident Danna Wu, expressed sympathy for the attendants’ demands but criticised the disruption, saying travellers were being left “in chaos.”
The Canadian government has several options, including court enforcement of the labour board’s order or legislation to end the strike. While Ottawa has previously intervened in major labour disputes, it is rare for a union to openly defy the CIRB, raising the stakes in an already tense standoff.
AnewZ has learned that India has once again blocked Azerbaijan’s application for full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, while Pakistan’s recent decision to consider diplomatic relations with Armenia has been coordinated with Baku as part of Azerbaijan’s peace agenda.
A day of mourning has been declared in Portugal to pay respect to victims who lost their lives in the Lisbon Funicular crash which happened on Wednesday evening.
Video from the USGS (United States Geological Survey) showed on Friday (19 September) the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii erupting and spewing lava.
At least eight people have died and more than 90 others were injured following a catastrophic gas tanker explosion on a major highway in Mexico City’s Iztapalapa district on Wednesday, authorities confirmed.
A powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula on 13 September with no tsunami threat, coming just weeks after the region endured a devastating 8.8-magnitude quake — the strongest since 1952.
A U.S. citizen has been released from Kabul after a senior U.S. delegation led by Adam Boehler, the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs, met with Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in Kabul.
The Warsaw Security Forum is kicking off in Poland on Monday, bringing together defence ministers, security experts, and international policymakers to discuss pressing global security challenges.
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev warned on Monday that Europe cannot afford a war with Russia, but if its leaders were to trigger one, it could spiral into a conflict involving weapons of mass destruction.
Sweden will support Denmark with military anti-drone capabilities in connection with summits in Copenhagen this week, after drone sightings last week forced Denmark to shut several airports, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said on Monday.
Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot and German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul met in Warsaw on Monday (29 September) within the Weimar Triangle framework.
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