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Canadian soldiers depart to help humanitarian crisis in Europe – CBC.ca

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Dozens of Canadian soldiers boarded a plane to Poland Friday for what their commander said would be an intense but gratifying mission to help Ukrainians fleeing Russian aggression.

The roughly 80 soldiers who took off from Edmonton and another 20 from Trenton, Ont., will offer humanitarian assistance at reception centres throughout Poland, said Maj. Ryan Pridmore, a company commander with 3rd Battalion Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry.

They, along with a Canadian medical unit, are to support the Polish Territorial Defence Force on a two-month mission.

“Our soldiers are all exceedingly happy to be deploying,” he said. “This is what we trained for. This is why we do this job. Our soldiers are ready to get in there and start helping make a difference.”

Once boots are on the ground, Pridmore said, he expects the soldiers will be put straight to work.

“We have chaplains to provide spiritual guidance and as well as some mental health professionals when refugees arrive into the reception centres,” said Pridmore, who has previously served in Afghanistan and Kuwait.

Some of the other soldiers have a background in linguistics, he added.

He said Canada is prepared to send about 50 more soldiers to help with the care, co-ordination and resettlement of Ukrainian refugees in Poland.

“We do have a team in place over there who’s setting the stage so we’re not rolling in blind but it’ll definitely be a pretty quick start to business once we get on the ground.”

The Canadian soldiers will support the Polish Territorial Defence Force on a two-month mission. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press)

On Thursday, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said in Calgary it’s appropriate to declare Russia’s occupation a genocide — as U.S. President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have said — since thousands of Ukrainians have been killed and brutalized.

Freeland pointed to a “chilling document” on a Russian website published 10 days ago “that effectively laid out a plan for genocide in Ukraine, that called for the suffering, the punishment of people who chose, in the view of this document, wrongly and mistakenly to describe themselves as Ukrainian.”

“That called for the word Ukraine to be erased,” said Freeland, who also serves as Canada’s finance minister.

Morale ‘exceptionally high’ as soldiers depart

The Department of National Defence said in a news release soldiers will also work with Immigration, Refugee, and Citizenship Canada and “act as a liaison with the Polish Armed Forces … to support temporary residence for Ukrainians wishing to work and study in Canada.”

On Friday, some soldiers in Edmonton joked about their nerves, whiles others slept at the airport lounge area before boarding their flight.

“I’ve been on several missions before where I’ve seen people who go out the door overseas, and this one is hitting close to home for a lot of people because certain people in the task force do have Ukrainian heritage,” said Lt. Kevin Moffat, a public affairs officer with the Canadian Armed Forces.

“I was very pleased to see that the morale was exceptionally high and, from my observation, I’d say the task force is going to be very effective in Poland.”

This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Meta and Canadian Press News Fellowship, which is not involved in the editorial process.
 

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Bitcoin is at the doorstep of $100,000 as post-election rally rolls on

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NEW YORK (AP) — Bitcoin topped $98,000 for the first time Thursday, extending a streak of record after record highs since the U.S. presidential election. The cryptocurrency has rocketed more than 40% in just two weeks.

Now, bitcoin is at the doorstep of $100,000, just two years after dropping below $17,000 following the collapse of crypto exchange FTX. The recent, dramatic rally arrives as industry players expect the incoming Trump administration to bring a more “crypto-friendly” approach toward regulating the digital currency.

Bitcoin traded as high as $98,349 early Thursday, according to CoinDesk, and was slightly below that level at 1:25 p.m. ET.

As with everything in the volatile cryptoverse, the future is impossible to know. And while some are bullish, other experts continue to warn of investment risks.

Here’s what you need to know.

Back up. What is cryptocurrency again?

Cryptocurrency has been around for a while now. But, chances are, you’ve heard about it more and more over the last few years.

In basic terms, cryptocurrency is digital money. This kind of currency is designed to work through an online network without a central authority — meaning it’s typically not backed by any government or banking institution — and transactions get recorded with technology called a blockchain.

Bitcoin is the largest and oldest cryptocurrency, although other assets like ethereum, tether and dogecoin have also gained popularity over the years. Some investors see cryptocurrency as a “digital alternative” to traditional money — but it can be very volatile, with its price reliant on larger market conditions.

Why is bitcoin soaring?

A lot of the recent action has to do with the outcome of the U.S. presidential election.

Crypto industry players have welcomed Trump’s victory, in hopes that he would be able to push through legislative and regulatory changes that they’ve long lobbied for — which, generally speaking, aim for an increased sense of legitimacy without too much red tape.

Trump, who was once a crypto skeptic, recently pledged to make the U.S. “the crypto capital of the planet” and create a “strategic reserve” of bitcoin. His campaign accepted donations in cryptocurrency and he courted fans at a bitcoin conference in July. He also launched World Liberty Financial, a new venture with family members to trade cryptocurrencies.

How of this will actually pan out — and whether or not Trump will successfully act quickly on these promises — has yet to be seen.

“This is not necessarily a short-term story, it’s likely a much longer-term story,” Citi macro strategist David Glass told The Associated Press last week. “And there is the question of how quickly can U.S. crypto policy make a serious impact on (wider adoption).”

Adam Morgan McCarthy, a research analyst at Kaiko, thinks the industry is craving “just some sort of clarity.” Much of the approach to regulating crypto in the past has been “enforcement based,” he notes, which has been helpful in weeding out some bad actors — but legislation might fill in other key gaps.

Gary Gensler, who as head of the Securities and Exchange Commission under President Joe Biden has led a U.S. government’s crackdown on the crypto industry, penalized a number of crypto companies for violating securities laws. Gensler announced Thursday that he would step down as SEC chair on Jan. 20, Inauguration Day.

Despite crypto’s recent excitement around Trump, McCarthy said that 2024 has already been a “hugely consequential year for regulation in the U.S.” — pointing to January’s approval of spot bitcoin ETFs, for example, which mark a new way to invest in the asset.

Spot ETFs have been the dominant driver of bitcoin for some time now — but, like much of the crypto’s recent momentum, saw record inflows postelection. According to Kaiko, bitcoin ETFs recorded $6 billion in trade volume for the week of the election alone.

In April, bitcoin also saw its fourth “halving” — a preprogrammed event that impacts production by cutting the reward for mining, or the creation of new bitcoin, in half. In theory, if demand remains strong, some analysts say this “supply shock” can also help propel the price long term. Others note it may be too early to tell.

What are the risks?

History shows you can lose money in crypto as quickly as you’ve made it. Long-term price behavior relies on larger market conditions. Trading continues at all hours, every day.

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, bitcoin stood at just over $5,000. Its price climbed to nearly $69,000 by November 2021, during high demand for technology assets, but later crashed during an aggressive series of Federal Reserve rate hikes. And in late 2022 collapse of FTX significantly undermined confidence in crypto overall, with bitcoin falling below $17,000.

Investors began returning in large numbers as inflation started to cool — and gains skyrocketed on the anticipation and then early success of spot ETFs. But experts still stress caution, especially for small-pocketed investors. And lighter regulation from the coming Trump administration could mean less guardrails.

While its been a big month for crypto — and particularly bitcoin, which McCarthy notes has set record highs for ten of the last 21 days — there’s always risk for “correction,” or seeing prices fluctuate back down some. Some assets may also have more restrictions than others.

“I would say, keep it simple. And don’t take on more risk than you can afford to,” McCarthy said — adding that there isn’t a “magic eight ball” to know for certain what comes next.

What about the climate impact?

Assets like bitcoin are produced through a process called “mining,” which consumes a lot of energy. Operations relying on pollutive sources have drawn particular concern over the years.

Recent research published by the United Nations University and Earth’s Future journal found that the carbon footprint of 2020-2021 bitcoin mining across 76 nations was equivalent to the emissions from burning 84 billion pounds of coal or running 190 natural gas-fired power plants. Coal satisfied the bulk of bitcoin’s electricity demands (45%), followed by natural gas (21%) and hydropower (16%).

Environmental impacts of bitcoin mining boil largely down to the energy source used. Industry analysts have maintained that clean energy has increased in use in recent years, coinciding with rising calls for climate protections



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Transgender community gathers in remembrance, opposition to Alberta legislation |

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Members of Edmonton’s transgender community and their loved ones gathered to mark the international Transgender Day of Remembrance where they held candles and mourned for transgender people who have recently died from violence or suicide. In Alberta, the gathering was also about opposing proposed legislation in the province. (Nov. 21, 2024)



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Canadian basketball player Chad Posthumus dead at 33 after brain aneurysm

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WINNIPEG – Canadian basketball player Chad Posthumus, a founding member of the Canadian Elite Basketball League, died Wednesday. He was 33.

The CEBL’s Winnipeg Sea Bears said Thursday that Posthumus, the team’s captain, suffered a brain aneurysm during a training session in Winnipeg on Nov. 9.

He then battled complications from a corrective surgery that left him in critical condition in the intensive care unit and did not recover.

Posthumus, a Winnipeg native, played for the CEBL’s Saskatchewan Rattlers, Ottawa BlackJacks, Edmonton Stingers and Brampton Honey Badgers before joining his hometown team.

He also played for teams in Argentina and Japan.

Internationally, the six-foot-11 Posthumus played for the 3×3 national team, representing Canada at the 3×3 AmeriCup in 2023.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 21, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



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