U.S. to accept white South African refugees while other programs remain paused.

The #Trump administration will welcome more than two dozen white South Africans to the United States as refugees next week, an unusual move because it has suspended most refugee resettlement operations, officials and documents said Friday.

The first Afrikaner refugees are arriving Monday at Dulles International Airport outside Washington, according to a document obtained by The Associated Press. They are expected to be greeted by a government delegation, including the deputy secretary of state and officials from the Department of Health and Human Services, whose refugee office has organized their resettlement.

The flight will be the first of several in a “much larger-scale relocation effort,” White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller told reporters.

The Trump administration has taken a number of steps against South Africa, accusing the Black-led government of pursuing anti-white policies at home and an anti-American foreign policy. The South African government denies the allegations and says the U.S. criticism is full of misinformation.

While State Department refugee programs have been suspended — halting arrivals from Afghanistan, Iraq, most of sub-Saharan Africa and other countries in a move being challenged in court — President Donald Trump issued an executive order in February prioritizing the processing of white South Africans claiming racial discrimination.

“What’s happening in South Africa fits the textbook definition of why the refugee program was created,” Miller said. “This is persecution based on a protected characteristic — in this case, race. This is race-based persecution.”
Efforts to get white South Africans to the U.S.

Since Trump’s executive order, the U.S. Embassy in Pretoria has been conducting interviews, “prioritizing consideration for U.S. refugee resettlement of Afrikaners in South Africa who are victims of unjust racial discrimination,” the State Department said.

The department said nothing about the imminent arrival of what officials said are believed to be more than two dozen white South Africans from roughly four families who applied for resettlement in the U.S. Their arrival had originally been scheduled for early last week but was delayed for reasons that were not immediately clear.

The HHS Office for Refugee Resettlement was ready to offer them support, including with housing, furniture and other household items, and expenses like groceries, clothing, diapers and more, the document says. “This effort is a stated priority of the Administration.”

HHS didn’t respond to messages seeking comment.

Supporters of the refugee program questioned why the Trump administration was moving so quickly to resettle white South Africans while halting the wider refugee program, which brings people to the U.S. who are displaced by war, natural disaster or persecution and involves significant vetting in a process that often takes years.

“We are concerned that the U.S. Government has chosen to fast-track the admission of Afrikaners, while actively fighting court orders to provide life-saving resettlement to other refugee populations who are in desperate need,” Church World Services president Rick Santos said in a statement. His group has been assisting refugees for more than 70 years.

Letting in white South Africans while keeping out Afghans is “hypocrisy,” said Shawn VanDiver, who heads #AfghanEvac, which helps resettle Afghans who assisted the U.S. during the two-decade war.

“Afghans who served alongside U.S. forces, who taught girls, who fought for democracy, and who now face Taliban reprisals, meet every definition of a refugee,” he said. “Afghans risked their lives for us. That should matter,” he said.
Trump administration has accused South Africa of anti-white policies

The Trump administration alleges the South African government has allowed minority white Afrikaner farmers to be persecuted and attacked, while introducing an expropriation law designed to take away their land.

The South African government has said it was surprised by claims of discrimination against Afrikaners because white people still generally have a much higher standard of living than Black people more than 30 years after the end of the apartheid system of white minority rule.

South Africa is the homeland of close Trump adviser Elon Musk, who has been outspoken in his criticism, and it also holds the rotating presidency of the Group of 20 developed and developing nations.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio notably boycotted a G20 foreign ministers meeting in Johannesburg in March because its agenda centered on diversity, inclusion and climate change. He also expelled South Africa’s ambassador to the U.S. in March for comments that the Trump administration interpreted as accusing the president of promoting white supremacy.

Shortly thereafter, the State Department ended all engagement with the G20 during South Africa’s presidency. The U.S. is due to host G20 meetings in 2026.
What South Africa says about the refugees

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s office said in a statement Friday that he had spoken with Trump late last month on issues including U.S. criticism of the country and allegations that Afrikaners are being persecuted. Ramaphosa told Trump that the information the U.S. president had received “was completely false.”

“Therefore, our position is that there are no South African citizens that can be classified as refugees to any part of the world, including the U.S.,” the statement said.

The South African foreign ministry said Deputy Foreign Minister Alvin Botes spoke with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau on Friday about the refugees. Landau is expected to lead the delegation to welcome the group Monday.

South Africa “expressed concerns” and denied allegations of discrimination against Afrikaners, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

“It is most regrettable that it appears that the resettlement of South Africans to the United States under the guise of being ‘refugees’ is entirely politically motivated and designed to question South Africa’s constitutional democracy,” the statement said. It noted that the country has worked to prevent any repeat of the type of persecution and discrimination that happened under apartheid rule.

The foreign ministry said it would not block anyone who wanted to leave as it respected their freedom of movement and choice.

But it said it was seeking information about the “status” of the people leaving South Africa, wanting assurances that they had been properly vetted and did not have outstanding criminal cases.

The foreign ministry added that South Africa was “dedicated to constructive dialogue” with the U.S.

Gumede reported from Johannesburg. Associated Press writers Gerald Imray in Cape Town, South Africa, Gisela Salomon in Miami, and Seung Min Kim and Amanda Seitz in Washington contributed to this report.

Pakistan says India fired missiles at 3 air bases inside country. Pakistani retaliation underway.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan said India fired missiles at three air bases inside the country Saturday but most of the missiles were intercepted and that retaliatory strikes on India were underway. It’s the latest escalation in a conflict triggered by a massacre last month that India blames on Pakistan.

The Pakistani military said it used medium-range Fateh missiles to target an Indian missile storage facility and airbases in Pathankot and Udhampur.

Pakistani army spokesman, Lt. Gen. Ahmad Sharif, said in a televised address that the country’s air force assets were safe following the Indian strikes. He added that some of the Indian missiles also hit India’s eastern Punjab.

“This is a provocation of the highest order,” Sharif said.

Tensions between the nuclear-armed rivals have soared since an attack at a popular tourist site in India-controlled Kashmir left 26 civilians dead, mostly Hindu Indian tourists, on April 22. New Delhi has blamed P akistan for backing the assault, an accusation Islamabad rejects.

The Indian missiles targeted Nur Khan air base in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, near the capital Islamabad, Murid air base in Chakwal city and Rafiqui air base in the Jhang district of eastern Punjab province, according to the spokesman. There was no immediate comment from India.

Sharif said some of the Indian missiles also went into Afghanistan.

“I want to give you the shocking news that India fired six ballistic missiles from its city of Adampur,” said Sharif. One of the ballistic missiles hit Adampur, the remaining five missiles hit the Indian Punjab area of Amritsar."

Residents in Indian-controlled Kashmir said they heard loud explosions Saturday at multiple places in the region, including the two big cities of Srinagar and Jammu, and the garrison town of Udhampur.

“Explosions that we are hearing today are different from the ones we heard the last two nights during drone attacks,” said Sheesh Paul Vaid, the region’s former top police official and a resident of Jammu. “It looks like a war here.”

Srinagar resident Mohammed Yasin said he heard at least two explosions. “Our home shook and windows rattled,” he said.

The Indian army said late Friday that drones were sighted in 26 locations across many areas in Indian states bordering Pakistan and Indian-controlled Kashmir, including Srinagar. It said the drones were tracked and engaged.

“The situation is under close and constant watch, and prompt action is being taken wherever necessary,” the statement added.

On Wednesday, India conducted airstrikes on several sites in Pakistani territory it described as militant-related, killing 31 civilians, according to Pakistani officials. Pakistan said it shot down five Indian fighter jets.

On Thursday, India said it thwarted Pakistani drone and missile attacks at military targets in more than a dozen cities and towns, including Jammu city in Indian-controlled Kashmir. Pakistan denied the claims. India said, meanwhile, that it hit Pakistan’s air defense systems and radars close to the city of Lahore. The incidents could not be independently confirmed.

The Group of Seven nations, or G7, urged “maximum restraint” from both India and Pakistan amid flaring hostilities.

“Further military escalation poses a serious threat to regional stability. We are deeply concerned for the safety of civilians on both sides,” a statement by Canada on behalf of G7 foreign ministers said Friday. “We call for immediate de-escalation and encourage both countries to engage in direct dialogue towards a peaceful outcome,” it said.

#Ugandan opposition leader Bobi Wine to seek presidency, chides West over rights. Ugandan opposition leader and pop singer Bobi Wine said on Friday he plans to run for president for a second time and criticised the West for not speaking out more against "gross human rights violations" in the country.

Wine, 43, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, will be challenging long-serving President Yoweri Museveni, 80, who is widely expected to seek re-election.

"Yeah, I've expressed my availability on behalf of my team," Wine said in an interview with Reuters when asked whether he would stand again in the East African country's next presidential election, due in January.

Wine came second in the last election in 2021 but rejected the outcome, alleging ballot staffing, falsification of results, beatings and intimidation by soldiers and other irregularities.
Government and electoral officials denied the accusations.

Wine criticised Western governments for not denouncing what he said were escalating human rights violations, including abductions, illegal detention and torture of his supporters and officials. Wine did not single out any country for criticism.

"Some leaders in the West are complicit in our suffering. They are here to crack their (business) deals and they don't care about human rights," he said.

"If they were standing for the values that they profess, then they would be castigating all these gross human rights violations."

Uganda is considered by the West as an ally in the fight against jihadists and has deployed troops in Somalia.

Uganda's justice minister said this week that Eddie Mutwe, an activist in Wine's National Unity Platform (NUP) party, who also doubles as his personal bodyguard, appeared to have been tortured while in captivity.

Museveni's son and head of the military, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, said he had kept him in his basement and that he was using him as a punching bag.

After missing for a week, Mutwe was on Monday produced in court, charged with robbery and remanded.

🔟 Top 10 Countries Facing the Highest US Visa Challenges

🇷🇼 Rwanda

Topping the list, Rwandans face extreme visa rejection due to political repression, economic hardship, and security red flags under Kagame’s regime. Many flee persecution or fear forced silence.

🇩🇿 Algeria

Algerians face steep refusals due to visa overstays in the past, security concerns, and trouble proving strong home ties.

🇬🇳 Guinea
With a fragile economy and one of the world’s weakest passports, Guineans are often denied over fears they won’t return.

4🇧🇮 Burundi

Years of political crisis, low development, and asylum fears make Burundian applications highly likely to be rejected.

🇸🇳 Senegal

Despite solid U.S. relations, Senegalese often fail to justify travel reasons or provide sufficient financial proof.

🇺🇿 Uzbekistan

The only non-African country on the list. Economic issues and visa abuse history give it a refusal rate of 64.41%.

🇬🇲 Gambia

The U.S. views Gambian applicants as high-risk due to past fraud cases and frequent overstays.

🇧🇯 Benin Beninese citizens struggle due to poor economic indicators and previous visa violations that raise red flags.

🇺🇬 Uganda

Ugandans often can’t demonstrate home ties or a stable financial background, leading to frequent denials.

🇰🇪 Kenya

Despite leading in immigration-related searches, Kenyans face a 63.32% visa rejection rate blamed on weak documentation and perceived risk.

Trump says election of Pope Leo XIV ‘great honour’ for U.S.

Here are key reactions:
‘A Great Honour’: Trump

“Congratulations to Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who was just named Pope. It is such an honor to realize that he is the first American Pope. What excitement, and what a Great Honor for our Country,” said U.S. President Donald Trump.

“I look forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV. It will be a very meaningful moment!”

Become ‘leader for migrants’: Colombia

“I hope he becomes a great leader for migrant peoples around the world, and I hope he encourages our Latin American migrant brothers and sisters, humiliated today in the United States. It’s time for them to organize,” said Colombian President Gustavo Petro.
Stronger Vatican ties: Israel

“We look forward to enhancing the relationship between Israel and the Holy See, and strengthening the friendship between Jews and Christians in the Holy Land and around the world. May your papacy be one of building bridges and understanding between all faiths and peoples,” said Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
‘Christian values unite us’:Putin

“I am confident that the constructive dialogue and cooperation established between Russia and the Vatican will continue to develop on the basis of the Christian values that unite us,” said Russian President Vladimir Putin.
‘Hope and guidance’: Germany

“Through your role, you provide hope and guidance to millions of believers around the world in these challenging times,” said German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
Strengthen ‘human rights’: Spain

“May his pontificate contribute to strengthening dialogue and the defence of human rights in a world that needs hope and unity,” said Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
Reinforce ‘unique bonds’: Poland

“Please accept the assurance of the readiness of the Republic of Poland to further strengthen these unique bonds -- in the name of shared values, responsibility for the common good and the strengthening of peace in the world,” said Polish President Andrzej Duda, a conservative Catholic.
‘Commitment to peace’: EU

“We wish that his pontificate be guided by wisdom and strength, as he leads the Catholic community and inspires the world through his commitment to peace and dialogue,” said European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen.

AFP

#Prevost, first U.S. pope, supported Francis and shunned spotlight.

#VATICAN CITY - Robert Prevost, the choice of the world’s Catholic cardinals to serve as leader of the 1.4-billion-member Church, is the first pope from the United States and a relative unknown on the global stage.

Aged 69 and originally from Chicago, Prevost has spent most of his career as a missionary in Peru and became a cardinal only in 2023. He has given few media interviews.

He takes the papal name Leo XIV, and succeeds Pope Francis, who had led the Church since 2013.

Rev. Mark Francis, a friend of Prevost since the 1970s, told Reuters the cardinal was a firm supporter of his predecessor’s papacy, and especially of the late pontiff’s commitment to social justice issues.

“He was always friendly and warm and remained a voice of common sense and practical concerns for the Church’s outreach to the poor,” said Francis, who attended seminary with Prevost and later knew him when they both lived in Rome in the 2000s.

“He has a wry sense of humor, but was not someone who sought the limelight,” said Francis, who leads the U.S. province of the Viatorian religious order.

Prevost first served as a bishop in Chiclayo, in northwestern Peru, from 2015 to 2023, and became a Peruvian citizen in 2015, so he has dual nationalities.

Pope Francis brought him to Rome that year to head the Vatican office in charge of choosing which priests should serve as Catholic bishops across the globe, meaning he has had a hand in selecting many of the world’s bishops.

Jesus Leon Angeles, coordinator of a Catholic group in Chiclayo who has known Prevost since 2018, called him a “very simple” person who would go out of his way to help others.

Leon Angeles said Prevost had shown special concern for Venezuelan migrants in Peru, saying: “He is a person who likes to help.” More than 1.5 million Venezuelans have moved to Peru in recent years, partly to escape their country’s economic crisis.

In a 2023 interview with the Vatican’s news outlet, Prevost focused on the importance of evangelization to help the Church grow.

“We are often preoccupied with teaching doctrine ... but we risk forgetting that our first task is to teach what it means to know Jesus Christ,” he said.

Prevost said during a 2023 Vatican press conference: “Our work is to enlarge the tent and to let everyone know they are welcome inside the Church.”
‘He knows how to listen’

Prevost was born in 1955 and is a member of the global Augustinian religious order, which includes about 2,500 priests and brothers, operates in 50 countries and has a special focus on a life of community and equality among its members.

He has a bachelor’s degree from Villanova University in Philadelphia, a master’s from the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, and a doctorate in Church law from the Pontifical College of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome.

Prevost first went to Peru as a missionary in 1985, returning to the United States in 1999 to take up a leadership role in his religious order.

He later moved to Rome to serve two six-year terms as head of the Augustinians, visiting many of the order’s communities across the world. He is known to speak English, Spanish, Italian, French and Portuguese.

Returning to Rome in 2023, Prevost generally did not take part in many of the social events that attract Vatican officials throughout the city.

Leon Angeles said he is a person with leadership skills, “but at the same time, he knows how to listen. He has that virtue.”

“The cardinal has the courtesy to ask for an opinion, even if it’s from the simplest or most humble person,” she said. “He knows how to listen to everyone.”

Bill Gates pledges his remaining fortune to the Gates Foundation, which will close in 20 years.

Bill Gates says he will donate 99 per cent of his remaining tech fortune to the Gates Foundation, which will now close in 2045, earlier than previously planned. Today, that would be worth an estimated US$107 billion.

The pledge is among the largest philanthropic gifts ever – outpacing the historic contributions of industrialists like John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie when adjusted for inflation. Only Berkshire Hathaway investor Warren Buffett’s pledge to donate his fortune — currently estimated by Forbes at US$160 billion — may be larger depending on stock market fluctuations.

Gates’ donation will be delivered over time and allow the foundation to spend an additional US$200 billion over the next 20 years.

“It’s kind of thrilling to have that much to be able to put into these causes,” Gates said in an interview with The Associated Press.

His announcement Thursday signals both a promise of sustained support to those causes, particularly global health and education in the U.S., and an eventual end to the foundation’s immense worldwide influence. Gates says spending down his fortune will help save and improve many lives now, which will have positive ripple effects well beyond the foundation’s closure. It also makes it more likely that his intentions are honoured.

“I think 20 years is the right balance between giving as much as we can to make progress on these things and giving people a lot of notice that now this money will be gone,” Gates said.
In a league of its own

The Gates Foundation has long been peerless among foundations — attracting supporters and detractors but also numerous unfounded conspiracy theories.

In addition to the US$100 billion it has spent since its founding 25 years ago, it has directed scientific research, helped develop new technologies, and nurtured long-term partnerships with countries and companies.

About 41 per cent of the foundation’s money so far has come from Warren Buffett and the rest from the fortune Gates made at Microsoft.

Started by Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates in 2000, the foundation plays a significant role in shaping global health policy and has carved out a special niche by partnering with companies to drive down the cost of medical treatments so low- and middle-income countries could afford them.

“The foundation work has been way more impactful than I expected,” Gates said, calling it his second and final career.

The foundation’s influence on global health — from the World Health Organization to research agendas — is both a measure of its success and a magnet for criticism. For years, researchers have asked why a wealthy family should have so much sway over how the world improves people’s health and responds to crises.

Gates said, like any private citizen, he can choose how to spend the money he earns and has decided to do everything he can to reduce childhood deaths.

“Is that a bad thing? It’s not an important cause? People can criticize it,” he said, but the foundation will stick to its global health work.

The Associated Press receives financial support for news coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation and for news coverage of women in the workforce and statehouses from Melinda French Gates’ organization, Pivotal Ventures.
Major ambitions for the remaining 20 years

The foundation’s most prized metric is the drop in childhood deaths from preventable causes by almost half between 2000 and 2020, according to United Nations figures. The foundation’s CEO Mark Suzman is careful to say they do not take credit for this accomplishment. But he believes they had a “catalytic role” — for example, in helping deliver vaccines to children through Gavi, the vaccine alliance they helped create.

The foundation still has numerous goals — eradicating polio, controlling other deadly diseases, like malaria, and reducing malnutrition, which makes children more vulnerable to other illnesses.

Gates hopes that by spending to address these issues now, wealthy donors will be free to tackle other problems later.

The Gates Foundation had planned to wind down two decades after Gates’ death, meaning today’s announcement significantly moves up that timetable. Gates plans to stay engaged, though at 69, he acknowledged he may not have a say.

In its remaining two decades, the foundation will maintain a budget of around US$9 billion a year, which represents a leveling off from its almost annual growth since 2006, when Buffett first started donating.

Suzman expects the foundation will narrow its focus to top priorities.

“Having that time horizon and the resources just puts an even greater burden on us to say, ‘Are you actually putting your resources, your thumb down, on what are going to be the biggest, most successful bets rather than scattering it too thinly?’” Suzman said, which he acknowledged was creating uncertainty even within the foundation about what programs would continue.
Gates is the only remaining founder

Major changes preceded the foundation’s 25th year.

In 2021, Melinda French Gates and Bill Gates divorced, and Buffett resigned as the foundation’s trustee. They recruited a new board of trustees to help govern the foundation, and in 2024, French Gates left to continue work at her own organization.

French Gates said she decided to step down partly to focus on countering the rollback of women’s rights in the U.S. At the ELLE Women of Impact event in New York in April, she said she wanted to leave the foundation at a high point.

“I so trusted Mark Suzman, the current CEO,” she said. “We had a board in place that I helped put in place, and I knew their values.”

Even as the foundation’s governance stabilizes, the road ahead looks difficult. Enduring conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza, global economic turmoil and cuts to foreign aid forecast fewer resources coming to global health and development.

“The greatest uncertainty for us is the generosity that will go into global health,” Gates said. “Will it continue to go down like it has the last few years or can we get it back to where it should be?”

Even facing these obstacles, Gates and the foundation speak, as they often do, with optimism, pointing to innovations they’ve funded or ways they’ve helped reduce the cost of care.

“It’s incredible to come up with these low-cost things and tragic if we can’t get them out to everyone who needs them,” Gates said. “So it’s going to require renewing that commitment of those who are well off to help those who are in the greatest need.”

Russia to host leaders of China and Brazil for the 80th anniversary of its World War II victory

Read the transcription of Carney and Trump’s White House meeting.

Prime Minister Mark Carney and U.S. President Donald Trump gave a press conference prior to a highly anticipated meeting at the White House on Tuesday.

Here’s a transcription of what the leaders said about the U.S. and Canada:

Donald Trump: Thank you very much everybody. It’s a great honour to have Prime Minister Mark Carney with us.

As you know, just a few days ago, he won a very big election in Canada, and I think I was probably the greatest thing that happened to him, but I can’t take a vote. His party was losing by a lot, and he ended up winning. So, I really want to congratulate him. It was probably one of the greatest comebacks in the history of politics, maybe even greater than mine.

But I want to just congratulate you. That was a great election, actually. We were watching it with interest, and I think Canada chose a very talented person, a very good person, as we spoke before the election quite a few times. And it’s an honour to have you at the White House and the Oval Office.

You see the new and improved Oval Office as it becomes more and more beautiful with love. Handle it with great love and 24 karat gold, that always helps too. But it’s been a lot of fun going over some of the beautiful pictures that were stored in the vaults that were for many, many years -- in some cases over 100 years -- it was stored in vaults of the great presidents, who are all most great presidents, all having a reason for being up every one of them. So, it’s very interesting.

But I just want to congratulate you, and you ran a really great race. I watched the debate. I thought you were excellent. And I think we have a lot of things in common. We have some tough, tough points to go over, and that’ll be fine. We’re going to also be discussing Ukraine-Russia, the war, because Mark wants it ended as quickly as I do. I think it has to end.

We had some very good news last night. The Houthis have announced that they are not, or they’ve announced to us, at least, that they don’t want to fight anymore. They just don’t want to fight. And we will honour that, and we will stop the bombings, and they have capitulated, but more importantly, we will take their word. They say they will not be blowing up ships anymore, and that’s what the purpose of what we were doing. So that’s just news, we just found out about that. So, I think it’s very, very positive. They were not going to have a lot of ships going, as you know, sailing beautifully down the various seas. It wasn’t just a canal, it was a lot of other places. And I will accept their word, and we are going to stop the bombing of the Houthis, effective immediately.

And Marco, you’ll let everybody know that. Do you have something to say about that, by the way? It’s a pretty big announcement.

Marco Rubio: This was always a freedom of navigation issue. These band of individuals with advanced weaponry that were threatening global shipping, and the job was to get that to stop, and if it’s going to stop and then we can stop. And so, I think it’s an important development.

Donald Trump: And we’ll have, maybe, before the Middle East and Saudi Arabia, we’re going to UAE and Qatar, and that’ll be, I guess, Monday night, some of you are coming with us.

I think before then, we’re going to have a very, very big announcement to make, like, as big as it gets, and I won’t tell you on what, and it’s very positive. I’d also I tell you if it was negative or positive, I can’t keep that up. It is really, really positive. And that announcement will be made either Thursday or Friday or Monday before we leave, but it’ll be one of the most important announcements that have been made in many years about a certain subject, very important subject. So, you’ll all be here.

Mark, would you like to say a few words?

Mark Carney: Thank you, Mr. President, I’m on the edge of my seat, actually. But thank you for your hospitality and above all, for your leadership. You’re a transformational president, focused on the economy, with a relentless focus on the American worker, securing your borders, ending the scourge of fentanyl and other opioids, and in securing the world.

And I’ve been elected with my colleagues here, with the help of my colleagues here, I’m going to spread the credit, to transform Canada with a similar focus on the economy, securing our borders, again, on fentanyl, much greater focus on defence and security, securing the Arctic and developing the Arctic. And, you know, the history of Canada and the U.S. is we’re stronger when we work together. And there’s many opportunities to work together. And I look forward to, you know, addressing some of those issues that we have, but also finding those areas of mutual cooperation.

Donald Trump: Very nice. Thank you very much. Very nice statement.

Reporter: Is USMCA dead?

Donald Trump: No, it was actually very effective, and it’s still very effective, but people have to follow it. So, you know, that’s been a problem. People haven’t followed it, but it was a transitional step a little bit. And as you know, it terminates fairly shortly. It gets renegotiated very shortly. But I thought it was a very positive step from NAFTA. NAFTA was the worst trade deal in the history of our country, probably in the history of the world, and this was a transitional deal, and we’ll see what happens. You know, we’re going to be starting to possibly renegotiate that if it’s even necessary. I don’t know that it’s necessary anymore, but it served a very good purpose. And the biggest purpose it served is we got rid of NAFTA. NAFTA was a very unfair deal for the United States, very, very terrible deal. It should have never been made. It was made many years ago, but it should have never been made.

Reporter: Would you like to see your first trade deal being with Canada?

Donald Trump: I would love that. Look, I have a lot of respect for this man, and I watched him come up, in a sense, through the ranks when he wasn’t given much of a chance. And he did.

He ran a really great campaign. He did a really great debate. I think that debate was very helpful. I was going to raise my hand. I don’t know if that’s good or bad, I shouldn’t say that, that might hurt you.

But no, he ran a really great election, I thought. And yeah, something could happen. Something could happen.

Reporter: What’s the top concession you want out of Canada?

Donald Trump: Concession?

Reporter: Yes

Donald Trump: Friendship.

Reporter: That’s not a concession:

Donald Trump: Oh, just, I just, we’re going to be friends with Canada. Regardless of anything. We’re going to be friends with Canada. Canada is a very special place to me. I know so many people that live in Canada. My parents had relatives that lived in Canada, my mother in particular. And no, I love Canada I have a lot of respect for the Canadians. Wayne Gretzky, I mean, how good, the great one. You happen to have a very, very good hockey player right here on the Capitals who is a big, tough cookie, who just broke the record, and he’s a great guy. And you know, we had the team here, and I got to know a lot of the players. But no, Canada is a very special place.

Reporter: Mr. president, and Mr. prime minister I’d like your response too. Mr. president, you have said that Canada should become the fifty first state.

Donald Trump: No, no. Well, I still believe that. But, you know, takes two to tango, right?

But no, I do. I mean, I believe it would be a massive tax cut for the Canadian citizens. You get free military, you get tremendous medical cares and other things. There would be a lot of advantages, but it would be a massive tax cut.

And it’s also a beautiful, you know, as a real estate developer, you know, I’m a real estate developer at heart. When you get rid of that artificially drawn line, somebody drew that line many years ago with, like, a ruler, just a straight line right across the top of the country.

When you look at that beautiful formation, when it’s together, I’m a very artistic person, but when I looked at that, you know, I said, ‘That’s the way it was meant to be.’

But, you know, I just, I do feel it’s much better for Canada, but we’re not going to be discussing that unless somebody wants to discuss it.

I think that there are tremendous benefits to the Canadian citizens, tremendously lower taxes, free military, which honestly, we give you essentially anyway, because we’re protecting Canada. But I think, you know, it would really be a wonderful marriage, because it’s two places that get along very well. They like each other a lot.

Mark Carney: Well, if I may, as you know, from real estate, there are some places that are never for sale.

Donald Trump: That’s true.

Mark Carney: We’re sitting in one right now, you know, Buckingham Palace you visited as well, and having met with the owners of Canada over the course of the campaign last several months, it’s not for sale. It won’t be for sale, ever.

But the opportunity is in partnership and what we can build together. And we have done that in the past, and part of that, as the president just said, is with respect to our own security. And my government is committed for a step change in our investment in Canadian security and our partnership. And I’ll say this as well, that the president has revitalized international security, revitalized NATO, and us playing our full weight in NATO.

Donald Trump: I will say, Canada is stepping up the military participation because Mark knew, you know, they were low, and now they’re stepping it up, and that’s a very important thing.

But never say never. Never say never.

Reporter: What would it take to get the tariffs off of Canada?

Donald Trump: Well, we’ll be talking about different things. You know, we want to protect our automobile business, and so does Mark.

But we want to protect, we want to make the automobiles, and we want to, you know, we have a tremendous abundance of energy, more than any country. We have, just in Alaska alone, ANWR has been reopened now, ANWR was probably the largest find anywhere in the world. They say it’s larger than Saudi Arabia, I don’t know, but it’s a lot.

But we have tremendous amounts of energy. Other countries don’t. We’re both lucky in that way. They have energy. We have energy. We have more than we could ever use, and more than we could ever sell, actually, and you have the same thing. So, we’re two countries that are very lucky. If you look at China, they don’t have that. You know, it’s a big disadvantage. Other countries, most countries don’t have, you know, most countries don’t have that. So, Canada and us, we have a lot of a lot of advantages all over the place.

Reporter: When you consider what Mr. Carney just said, that Canada is not for sale, does this make the discussion a little more difficult to start on?

Donald Trump: No, not at all. Time. Time will tell. It’s only time. But I say, never say never.

I’ve had many, many things that were not doable, and they ended up being doable and only doable in a very friendly way. But if it’s to everybody’s benefit, you know, Canada loves us, and we love Canada, that’s, I think, the number one thing that’s important. But we’ll see, I mean over time, we’ll see what happens.

Reporter: Clarifying something you said on the USMCA, is the United States prepared to walk away from that pact?

Donald Trump: What pact?

Reporter: USMCA.

Donald Trump: No, no. It’s fine. It’s there. It’s good. We use it for certain things. It’s there. The USMCA is a good deal for everybody.

I won’t say this about Mark, but I didn’t like his predecessor. I didn’t like a person that worked, she was terrible, actually. She was a terrible person, and she really hurt that deal very badly, because she tried to take advantage of the deal, and she didn’t get away with it, you know who I’m talking about.

But so, you know, we had a bad relationship having to do with the fact that we disagreed with the way they viewed the deal, and we ended it, you know, we ended that relationship pretty much. The USMCA is great for all countries. It’s good for all countries. We do have a negotiation coming up over the next year or so to adjust it or terminate it.

Mark Carney: I’ll say a word on USMCS, if I may, Mr. president. It is a basis for a broader negotiation. Some things about it are going to have to change. And part of the way you’ve conducted these tariffs has taken advantage of existing aspects of USMCA, so it’s going to have to change. There’s other elements that have come and that’s part of what we’re going to discuss.

Reporter: During the campaign, Prime Minister Carney talked about the American [?], how do you react when Canada decided not to shop in the American store as much as before, and decided to partner with other countries?

Donald Trump: Well, we don’t do much business with Canada from our standpoint. They do a lot of business with us. We’re at like 4 per cent and usually those things don’t last very long.

You know, we have great things, great product. The kind of product we sell, nobody else can sell, including military.

Look, we make the best military equipment in the world. And Canada buys our military equipment, which we appreciate. But we make the best military equipment in the world, by far, the missiles, the submarines, everything. Everything we have is really top notch.

I rebuilt our military during our last term. Stupidly, we gave some away to Afghanistan, which shouldn’t have happened, but that was, I think it was the most embarrassing moment in the history of our country. It was just very incompetent people.

But if you look, the man that’s now the head of our Joint Chiefs, he led the attack on ISIS for me, that’s why he’s the head of the Joint Chiefs, and “Razin” Caine, he was unbelievable. And as you know, we defeated ISIS in three weeks. It was supposed to take five years. We did it in three weeks, and he ran the campaign. I said, I like him, but I knew him before. I went to Iraq, and we agreed to a plan, and that was the plan. And as you know, we did it in record time. So, we have the best equipment in the world. We have the best a lot of things, but Canada does a lot more business with us than we do with Canada.

Reporter: What changes would you like to see to the USMCA? Or what changes would you make?

Donald Trump: We’re going to work on some subtle changes, maybe? I don’t even know if we’re going to be dealing with USMCA. We’re dealing more with concepts right now. Look, right now, we’re doing trade. We have trade. They’re paying a tariff on cars and steel and aluminum, and I think we have a baseline of 10 per cent or something like that for the tariffs. But we’re getting along very well. Right now, going no further, but we have an agreement, we did something with even parts. You want to discuss that, Howard? With respect to Canada, which helps Canada out.

Howard Lutnick: Sure, we’ve made arrangements with the car companies that 15 per cent of their USMCA parts are included, and then 15 per cent of foreign parts from the manufactured subject to retail price are not tariffed to help domestic manufacturing really thrive.

Donald Trump: So, it gave them a chance to be able to build their car parts, factories. A lot of these companies already have factories, and What they have to do is just fill them out, but they’re able to build them in the United States, so we gave them a pretty substantial period of time.

Reporter: Is there anything the prime minister could say to you today to change your mind on tariffing Canada?

Donald Trump: Tariffing cars?

Reporter: Tariffing Canada. Is there anything he can say to you in the course of your meetings with him today that could get you to lift tariffs on Canada?

Donald Trump: No.

Reporter: Why not?

Donald Trump: It’s just the way it is.

Reporter: On the 51st state, if Canadians don’t want it, would you respect that?

Donald Trump: Sure, I would. But this is not necessarily a one-day deal. This is over a period of time they have to make that decision.

Mark Carney: If I may. Well, respectfully, Canadians’ view on this is not going to change on the 51st state. Secondly, we are the largest client of the United States in the totality of all the goods. So, we are the largest client the United States. We have a tremendous auto sector between the two of us, and the changes that have been made have been helpful. You know, 50 per cent of a car that comes from Canada is American. That’s not like anywhere else in the world. And to your question about, is there one thing? No, this is a bigger discussion. There are much bigger forces involved and this will take some time and some discussions, and that’s why we’re here, to have those discussions, and that is represented by who’s sitting around the table.

Donald Trump: See the conflict is, and this is very friendly, this is not going to be like, we had another little blow up with somebody else. That was a much different… this is a very friendly conversation.

But we want to make our own cars. We don’t really want cars from Canada, and we put tariffs on cars from Canada, and at a certain point it won’t make economic sense for Canada to build those cars.

And we don’t want steel from Canada, because we’re making our own steel away massive steel plants being built right now as we speak. We really don’t want Canadian steel, and we don’t want Canadian aluminum and various other things, because we want to be able to do it ourselves.

And because of, you know, past thinking of people, we have a tremendous deficit with Canada. In other words, they have a surplus with us, and there’s no reason for us to be subsidizing Canada. Canada is a place that will have to be able to take care of itself economically. I assume they can.

I will tell you that Trudeau, when I spoke to him, I used to call him Governor Trudeau. I think that probably didn’t help his election, but when I spoke to him, I said, so why are we taking your cars? We want to make them ourselves.

I mean, I said, and if the price of your cars went up, or if we put a tariff on your cars of 25 per cent, what would that mean to you? He said that would mean the end of Canada. He actually said that to me, and I said, that’s a strange answer, but I understand his answer.

But no, I mean, it’s hard to justify subsidizing Canada to the tune of maybe $200 billion a year. We protect Canada militarily, and we always will. We’re going to, you know, that’s not a money thing, but we always will. But, you know, it’s not fair. But why are we subsidizing Canada $200 billion a year, or whatever the number might be, it’s a very substantial number. And it’s hard for the American taxpayer to say, “gee whiz, we love doing that.”

Thank you very much.

#India says it attacked nine sites in Pakistan, Pakistani Kashmir. ISLAMABAD —India fired missiles into Pakistani-controlled territory in several locations early Wednesday, killing at least eight people including a child, Pakistani authorities said. India said it was striking infrastructure used by militants.

Tensions have soared between the nuclear-armed neighbors since last month’s massacre of tourists in the Indian-controlled portion of Kashmir. India has blamed Pakistan for backing the militant attack, which Islamabad has denied.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned Wednesday’s airstrikes and said the “deceitful enemy has carried out cowardly attacks at five locations in Pakistan” and that his country would retaliate.

“Pakistan has every right to give a robust response to this act of war imposed by India, and a strong response is indeed being given,” Sharif said.

He said his country and its armed forces “know very well how to deal with the enemy.”

Sharif has convened a meeting of the National Security Committee for Wednesday morning.

The missiles struck locations in Pakistan-administered Kashmir and in the country’s eastern Punjab province. One hit a mosque in the city of Bahawalpur in Punjab, where a child was killed and a woman and man were injured.

State-run Pakistan Television, quoting security officials, said the country’s air force shot down three Indian jets in retaliation but provided no additional detail. There was no immediate comment from India about Pakistan’s claim.

Pakistan’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said Indian forces had launched the strikes while staying in Indian airspace. Other locations hit were near Muridke in Punjab and Kotli in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir.

It said the attack reportedly resulted in civilian casualties and posed a significant threat to commercial air traffic. “This reckless escalation has brought the two nuclear-armed states closer to a major conflict,” the statement said.

India’s Defense Ministry said at least nine sites were targeted “where terrorist attacks against India have been planned.”

“Our actions have been focused, measured and non-escalatory in nature. No Pakistan military facilities have been targeted,” the statement said, adding that “India has demonstrated considerable restraint in selection of targets and method of execution.”

“We are living up to the commitment that those responsible for this attack will be held accountable,” the statement said.

Stephane Dujarric, the United Nations spokesperson, said in a statement late Tuesday that Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was “very concerned about the Indian military operations across the Line of Control and international border” and called for maximum military restraint from both countries.

“The world cannot afford a military confrontation between India and Pakistan,” the statement read.

In Muzaffarabad, the main city of Pakistan-controlled Kashmir, resident Abdul Sammad, said he heard several explosions and that some people were wounded in the attack. People were seen running in panic and authorities immediately cut the power, leading to a blackout.

The blasts ripped through walls. Locals inspected the damage to their homes in the aftermath of the missile attacks, rubble and other debris crunching underfoot.

People took refuge on the streets and in open areas, fearful of what might happen. “We were afraid the next missile might hit our house,” said Mohammad Ashraf.

Waqar Noor, the region’s interior minister, said authorities have declared an emergency in the region’s hospitals.

Pakistan shut schools in Pakistan-administered Kashmir and Punjab province after the missile strikes. It had already had closed religious seminaries in Kashmir in anticipation of an attack by India.

Along the Line of Control, which divides the disputed region of Kashmir between India and Pakistan, there were heavy exchanges of fire between both armies.

Saaliq reported from New Delhi. Associated Press writers Ishfaq Hussian in Muzaffarabad, Pakistan, Babar Dogar in Lahore, Pakistan, and Asim Tanveer in Multan, Pakistan, contributed to this story.