Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (r) and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol attend a joint statement in Kyiv on July 15, 2023. Photo: Reuters/Valentyn Ogirenko

Grain shipping deal can operate without Russia, Zelenskyy says

'Blackmail is not allowed for anyone'

Kyiv | Reuters — The Black Sea grain shipment deal must continue and could operate without Russian participation after Moscow’s withdrawal on Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. Ukraine, Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address, was a food source for 400 million people. “Africa has the right to stability. Asia has the right to […] Read more

Vessels are seen as they await inspection under the Black Sea Grain Initiative, brokered by the UN and Turkey, in the southern anchorage of the Bosphorus at Istanbul on Dec. 11, 2022. (File photo: Reuters/Yoruk Isik)

Black Sea grain deal expires after Russia quits

United Nations says the move would "strike a blow to people in need everywhere"

United Nations/Moscow | Reuters – A deal allowing the safe Black Sea export of Ukraine’s grain for the past year expired on Monday after Russia quit and warned it could not guarantee the safety of ships in a move the United Nations said would “strike a blow to people in need everywhere.” Moscow suggested that […] Read more


Vessels are seen as they await inspection under the Black Sea Grain Initiative, brokered by the UN and Turkey, in the southern anchorage of the Bosphorus at Istanbul on Dec. 11, 2022. (File photo: Reuters/Yoruk Isik)

UN waits for Russian answer as Black Sea deal deadline looms

U.S. says Russia using grain deal 'as a weapon'

United Nations | Reuters — UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is still waiting for a response from Russian President Vladimir Putin on a proposal to extend a deal allowing the safe Black Sea export of Ukraine grain beyond Monday, a U.N. spokesperson said on Friday. Guterres wrote to Putin on Tuesday asking him to extend the […] Read more

A Belize-flagged bulker, carrying grain under UN’s Black Sea Grain Initiative, transits the Bosphorus at Istanbul on May 12, 2023. (File photo: Reuters/Yoruk Isik)

UN scrambles to save Black Sea deal ahead of Monday deadline

Russia says has not yet taken final decision

United Nations | Reuters — The European Commission is helping the United Nations and Turkey try to extend a deal allowing the Black Sea export of Ukraine grain and is open to “explore all solutions,” a European Union spokesperson said on Thursday, ahead of the deal’s possible expiration on Monday. The U.N. and Turkey brokered […] Read more


Aerial view of Centerm, a Burrard Inlet terminal for containerized cargo at the Port of Vancouver. (Bloodua/iStock/Getty Images)

B.C. waterfront work to resume ‘as soon as possible’

BCMEA, ILWU reach tentative four-year deal

Striking longshore workers and their management are “finalizing details” for work to resume at Canada’s West Coast ports after a tentative deal was reached Thursday. The B.C. Maritime Employers Association said in a release Thursday morning it had reached a tentative pact with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU Canada) on a new four-year […] Read more

Liberia-flagged bulker K Sukret, carrying grain under the Black Sea Grain Initiative, waits for inspection in the southern anchorage of Istanbul on May 17, 2023. (Photo: Reuters/Mehmet Emin Caliskan)

UN asks Putin to extend Black Sea grain deal in return for SWIFT access

Grain export initiative to expire Monday otherwise

United Nations | Reuters — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has proposed to Russian President Vladimir Putin that he extend a deal allowing the safe Black Sea export of grain from Ukraine in return for connecting a subsidiary of Russia’s agricultural bank to the SWIFT international payment system, sources told Reuters. Russia has threatened to ditch […] Read more


File photo of beluga whales in Hudson Bay off Churchill, Manitoba. (Lynn_Bystrom/iStock/Getty Images)

Prairie Forecast: Large Hudson Bay low dominates

Forecast issued July 12, covering July 12-19

As the weather models correctly predicted, a large and extremely strong area of low pressure formed over Hudson Bay during the last forecast period, bringing the expected cool and unsettled weather to the eastern half of the Prairies. Over the western half of the Prairies a weak upper-level ridging brought, for the most part, sunny […] Read more

Canola growers could now qualify for up to $20,000 to adopt 4R nitrogen management techniques.

Feds up the ante for canola growers adopting 4R

Cash available more than triples in second year of Canola 4R Advantage

Reading Time: 4 minutes The federal government has loosened the purse strings for canola producers hoping to set up select 4R nutrient management practices on their farms. Applicants to the Canola 4R Advantage program can now seek up to $20,000 in assistance for each of three (possibly four) eligible 4R best management practices, compared to $6,000 per BMP in […] Read more


Aerial view of Centerm, a Burrard Inlet terminal for containerized cargo at the Port of Vancouver. (Bloodua/iStock/Getty Images)

Feds to propose terms to settle B.C. ports strike

Labour minister asks mediator to draft a deal

In the hope of ending a longshore workers’ strike at British Columbia’s ports, Canada’s labour minister plans to put forward a recommendation for a settlement to break a stalemate between union and management. In a statement at about 9:30 CT Tuesday evening, Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan said he had asked the senior federal mediator in […] Read more

Nutrien’s head office building in Saskatoon. (Liam O’Connor photo)

Nutrien cuts output as West Coast port strike hits day 11

Longshore union, management met Monday night, source says

Ottawa | Reuters — The world’s biggest fertilizer producer Nutrien cut production on Tuesday, citing the impact of a 11-day-old strike in Canada’s Pacific ports whose cost has now ballooned to an estimated $6 billion. Some 7,500 dock workers represented by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU Canada) walked off on July 1 after […] Read more