TORONTO (AP) — Quebec’s premier said Canada-U.S. trade negotiations are “far from over” and demanded more information from Prime Minister Mark Carney before deciding whether an emerging agreement adequately protects Quebec’s dairy and forestry sectors.
Premier Christine Fréchette also pushed back against quickly restoring U.S. alcohol to provincial stores, saying Quebec alone would decide whether American products return to shelves at the SAQ, the Quebec government corporation that controls most retail sales of wine and spirits in the province.
“Information is missing before I can make the right decisions to ensure Quebecers are protected. I am awaiting clarifications from Mr. Carney,” she said in a social media post late Wednesday.
Canada and the United States moved closer Wednesday to finalizing a trade agreement that would avert threatened 50% U.S. tariffs. Trump has said the agreement was “very fair” to both sides and predicted U.S. farmers and manufacturers would benefit. Tariffs on about $20 billion worth of Canadian imports have been postponed until 12:01 a.m. Saturday.
Quebec does not have a veto over a Canada-U.S. trade agreement, but it controls provincial measures such as whether U.S. alcohol is sold through the SAQ.
Carney asked provincial premiers during a briefing Wednesday to return U.S. alcohol to store shelves, Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston said, a step aimed at addressing one of the Trump administration’s key trade complaints.
The White House says the emerging deal includes a Canadian commitment to address restrictions on U.S. alcohol. But Carney cannot order provinces to restore sales.
Fréchette’s Coalition Avenir Québec faces voters in an October provincial election, adding political pressure as she weighs concessions affecting dairy, forestry and U.S. alcohol sales.
Houston and two other premiers voiced support for the direction of the talks, though Houston said whether Canadians would actually buy U.S. alcohol again “is a whole other discussion.”
Eight of Canada’s 10 provinces restrict or ban U.S. alcohol — measures imposed in retaliation for Trump’s previous tariffs on Canadian goods and amid anger over his repeated talk of making Canada the 51st U.S. state.
Ontario, Canada’s most populous province, is especially important. Its government-run LCBO, one of the world’s largest alcohol purchasers, sold nearly C$1 billion ($723 million) in U.S. products annually before pulling them from shelves last year.
While details of the emerging agreement remain vague, Trump has claimed Canada agreed to end tariffs on U.S. agricultural products.
Canada currently allows a set amount of dairy imports at low tariffs. Once imports exceed that limit, much higher tariffs apply. The U.S. says Canada’s supply-management system makes it harder for American dairy producers to gain full access to the Canadian market.
Dominic LeBlanc, the Canadian minister responsible for trade with the U.S., said Canada’s “agriculture sector will be well protected and we have maintained our tough line.”
FILE - Quebec Premier Christine Frechette is greeted by French President Emmanuel Macron before a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, on May 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, File)
Iran on Thursday dismissed U.S. President Donald Trump’ s threats of economic pain and isolation, while the U.K and other nations condemned Israel over a controversial settlement project.
In Gaza City, a mass funeral was held for 50 people killed in Israeli airstrikes nearly three years ago but whose remains were just recovered. Meanwhile, Syria’s foreign minister visited Pakistan, which is seeking to defuse tensions between the United States and Iran.
Here’s a look at the latest developments in the Iran war and the wider Middle East on Thursday. Full coverage can be found here.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has rejected the economic threats made against his country, saying that such “failed policies” will stir more hostility among Iranians and “bring more failures.”
Araghchi's comments came a few hours after President Donald Trump threatened “crushing economic measures” against Iran. Trump promised “Economic Warfare and Isolation on an unprecedented scale,” but provided few details.
In a social media post, Araghchi maintained the threats aim to divert the attention of the U.S. public from domestic financial problems, adding that U.S. “economic terrorism threatens the global economy and the national sovereignty of countries around the world.”
Several countries condemned the latest development in a contentious Israeli settlement project near Jerusalem that would effectively cut the occupied West Bank in two.
Israel’s Ministry of Construction and Housing issued a tender for constructing several compounds with more than 1,200 homes in total in an open tract of land east of Jerusalem. It’s the latest step in a project under consideration for more than two decades, which critics say would prevent the establishment of a contiguous Palestinian state in the territory.
British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband called the publication of the tender “an unacceptable and destructive act” and denounced “settler violence and terrorism.” In a statement released on Wednesday, he added that the British government “demanded an immediate reversal” and had summoned the Israeli chargé d’affaires.
Egypt and Jordan also condemned Israel’s move, which Cairo said would isolate east Jerusalem from its Palestinian surroundings.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar responded on Thursday by defending “the historic right of the Jewish people to reestablish their national home in the Land of Israel — including in the area in question.” Saar criticized Britain’s government for “blaming only Israel while ignoring Palestinian extremism.”
A mass funeral Thursday in Gaza City remembered 50 Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes in the opening months of the Israel-Hamas war but whose remains were only recently recovered from under rubble.
Dozens of mourners carried the remains, draped in Palestinian flags, through debris-strewn streets before lowering them into graves. Some held portraits and posters with photos of the deceased.
“We were able to recover them after three years of war, after three years of anguish, pain and torture. We were able to recover them, and dignify them in their final resting place. We were able to pray over them and bury them,” said Lina Karam, who lost her father and other members of her family.
The 50 bodies were from three families who were killed in airstrikes in November and December 2023.
The nearly three-year war has killed more than 73,400 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The ministry, which was part of the Hamas-run government, maintains detailed records viewed as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and international organizations. It doesn’t distinguish between civilians and militants, but says women and children make up around half of the toll.
Turkey has denied that a Turkish military delegation had visited an air base in northern Syria that was hit by Israeli airstrikes, and vowed to continue supporting Syria in its efforts to rebuild its military.
The Israeli strikes targeted the Abu Duhur base early on Tuesday, causing damage but no casualties. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Israel had attacked the base because Syria was “on the verge of breaching” an agreed-upon “status quo in security matters” by allowing Turkish troops to deploy there.
Syrian officials have said that a Turkish delegation visited the base before the Israeli strike to review rehabilitation work underway there.
Syria's Foreign Minister Assad al-Shibani arrived in Islamabad for talks expected to focus on regional issues, Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
The visit comes days after Israeli airstrikes targeted an air base in northern Syria, causing damage but no casualties.
Pakistani officials say the country's political and military leadership remains in contact with both Iran and United States over efforts to de-escalate tensions and push for the resumption of talks after a 60-day deadline under a June memorandum of understanding expired. The agreement was brokered by Pakistan with help from regional countries.
The bodies of two Pakistanis killed in last week’s Houthi attack on a Tanzanian-flagged commercial vessel in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait have been repatriated to Pakistan.
Six Pakistani sailors who were injured in the attack have also safely returned to the country, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said in a post on X.
Mourners carry the flag-draped bodies of Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes during the war with Hamas, whose remains were recently recovered from the rubble, in Gaza City, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Mourners carry the flag-draped bodies of Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes during the war with Hamas, whose remains were recently recovered from the rubble, in Gaza City, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Mourners attend the funeral Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes during the war with Hamas, whose remains were recently recovered from the rubble, in Gaza City, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Mourners carry the flag-draped bodies of Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes during the war with Hamas, whose remains were recently recovered from the rubble, in Gaza City, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
In this photo released by the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani, left, shakes hands with his Pakistani counterpart Ishaq Dar before their meeting in Islamabad, Pakistan, Thursday, Aug. 20, 2026. (Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs via AP)
