The report said the U.S. would end a naval blockade of Iranian shipping, citing a memorandum of understanding being negotiated between the two sides to end the war which has choked global energy supplies through the strategic waterway

International News via Reuters:

Tehran would restore shipping through the Strait of Hormuz to pre-war levels within a month in a framework deal with the U.S. to also include withdrawing U.S. forces from Iran’s vicinity, Iranian state television reported on Wednesday.

The report said the U.S. would end a naval blockade of Iranian shipping, citing a memorandum of understanding being negotiated between the two sides to end the war which has choked global energy supplies through the strategic waterway.

Iranian state TV said it had obtained an unofficial draft of the MOU though it was not final and may not be agreed.

The U.S. denied the report, saying it was “complete fabrication” in a White House statement on social media.

Iran’s government did not comment.

The issue of U.S. troops in the region also needs further discussion, the TV report said without being more specific.

There was no mention of Iran’s nuclear programme which the U.S. wants disbanded.

The state TV report was the latest signal of possible progress towards a deal, although publicly Tehran and Washington have outlined positions starkly at odds and the potential terms outlined by the broadcaster did not appease all U.S. demands.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday it may take a few more days, after President Donald Trump had raised hopes over the weekend for an imminent end to the war.

Key sticking points have included reopening and management of the waterway through which a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas flowed before the conflict and the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear capacity.

Oil prices fell more than 5% on Wednesday after the Iranian TV report.

It was not immediately clear what a U.S. military pullback as described by Iranian state television would look like. 

The U.S. military has some 15,000 troops currently enforcing a blockade of Iran and has thousands of additional forces at bases throughout the region, including in Gulf states like Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. 

U.S. naval vessels, some with thousands of sailors and Marines aboard, regularly transit the region, stopping in ports including in Oman. The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

NUCLEAR ISSUE FOR A SECOND ROUND

Iranian sources have said talks on the nuclear issue will come in a second round of negotiations – something that may not be acceptable to some of Trump’s closest supporters.

Trump, who will meet with his top aides at the White House on Wednesday, has said dismantling Iran’s nuclear programme to prevent Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon was the key aim of the war. Iran says the programme is for peaceful purposes only.

Earlier on Wednesday, a senior Iranian official told reporters on the sidelines of the first International Security Forum in Moscow that reopening the strait remained a sticking point.

“As long as we have not agreed on all issues, we consider that nothing has been agreed,” Iran’s deputy secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, Ali Bagheri Kani, told reporters when asked about a deal on reopening the waterway.

State TV said the framework, which excludes military vessels and envisages Iran managing ship traffic through the strait in cooperation with Oman, was not yet finalised and that Tehran would take no steps without “tangible verification”.

The conflict, which began on February 28, has killed thousands and caused an unprecedented oil supply shock, pushing up the costs of fuel, fertilizer and food. 

It has also created political problems for Trump at home, where polls show the war is deeply unpopular with the public six months before mid-term elections. 

Even as peace talks continued, the U.S. launched a series of what it called defensive strikes on Tuesday in Iran’s southern Hormozgan province targeting missile sites and boats attempting to lay mines. 

Iran’s foreign ministry said the strikes represented a “gross violation” of a tenuous ceasefire in place for nearly seven weeks.

Reporting by Reuters’ bureaux; Writing by Sharon Singleton; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne

Guilbeault’s planned resignation, first reported by the Globe and Mail and the Toronto Star, will reduce the already slim majority of Carney’s Liberals in Parliament to one seat

International News via Reuters:

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney thanked his former cabinet minister Steven Guilbeault on Wednesday ahead of his expected resignation from the Liberal party’s caucus later in the day over dissatisfaction with government climate policies. 

Guilbeault’s planned resignation, first reported by the Globe and Mail and the Toronto Star, will reduce the already slim majority of Carney’s Liberals in Parliament to one seat.

Carney thanked Guilbeault for his many contributions to the people of Canada, saying they worked together when the prime minister was a United Nations special representative for climate. 

“It’s for him to make decisions about his career,” Carney said. “I wish him all the best and I’m sure in some way, shape or form, we’ll have an opportunity to continue to work together on issues of interest.” 

In November, Guilbeault, then identity and culture minister, quit Carney’s cabinet over his opposition to a deal Ottawa made with the oil-producing province of Alberta to roll back certain climate rules to spur investment in energy production.

Guilbeault previously served as environment minister under former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Carney’s government secured a majority in April, after three special elections in Ontario and Quebec gave his Liberal party 174 seats in the 343-seat House of Commons. 

Carney had said a majority would help him deal more effectively with the trade war started by U.S. President Donald Trump, in addition to likely sparing him another election for years and making it easier to pass legislation. The Liberals need 172 seats for a bare majority.

Laura Stephenson, a professor of political science at the University of Western Ontario, said Guilbeault’s resignation showed parts of the Liberal party might not be on board with Carney’s policies prioritizing the economy.

She said several other Liberal lawmakers have suggested they might also quit, possibly leaving Carney with another minority government.

“It’s tricky to balance concerns from the West that deal with energy while also supporting those who like the party’s more leftist-environmental bent,” she said. “Carney’s got a clear vision, but whether his party will unite behind him at all times is not clear.”

Reporting by Maria ChengEditing by Tomasz Janowski

The move by the EU executive aims to allow new operators into the market following next year’s expiry of licenses currently held by U.S. companies Viasat and EchoStar

International News via Reuters:

Non-European satellite operators such as Elon Musk’s Starlink and Amazon’s low-earth-orbit satellite business can bid for European mobile satellite spectrum next year but the bulk of the frequencies will be reserved for European businesses, the European Commission said on Wednesday.

The move by the EU executive aims to allow new operators into the market following next year’s expiry of licenses currently held by U.S. companies Viasat and EchoStar.

The new allocation system comes amid a push by EU to boost the bloc’s tech sovereignty by promoting European tech players, driven by concerns over China’s technological rise and the dominance of U.S. tech giants at a time of transatlantic tensions.

The 2 GHz frequency band is ideal for direct-to-direct services allowing users to bypass telecoms providers and for providing critical communication capabilities and also ensure access to high-speed internet in remote areas.

“More than ever, high-capacity widely available satellite connectivity is essential to strengthen the resilience of the EU’s communication networks,” EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen said in a statement.

“Satellite connectivity is also crucial for our governmental services and Europe’s critical communications,” she said.

The new allocation system will reserve one third of the mobile satellite spectrum for governmental use such as security and military, which will be provided by an EU operator that will integrate the capability with the EU’s IRIS2 multi-orbit array of 290 satellites, the Commission said.

IRIS2 is Europe’s response to Starlink.

Two thirds of the spectrum will be divided equally between EU and non-EU operators for commercial use, the EU executive said, confirming a Reuters report.

Reporting by Foo Yun Chee, editing by Inti Landauro

The companies intend to build a sovereign European space hardware and mission business before the end of this decade

International News via Reuters:

Schaeffler and U.S.-based satellite operator Spire Global have signed a memorandum of understanding to jointly develop space hardware and satellite platforms for European defence, weather and security applications.

The companies intend to build a sovereign European space hardware and mission business before the end of this decade, they said in a joint statement on Wednesday.

Spire, which uses its satellites to provide data, analytics and software products, has the capacity to produce between 300 and 400 satellites per year across facilities in the U.S. and Europe.

The German machine and auto parts manufacturer meanwhile named space and defence among key growth drivers in its 2035 strategy.

“As a motion technology company, Schaeffler is ideally positioned to enter the new space sector,” CEO Klaus Rosenfeld said in the statement.

The partnership is aimed at accelerating Schaeffler’s entry into the space sector while strengthening Spire’s presence in Germany, they said.

Reporting by Christina Amann, writing by Amir Orusov, editing by Milla Nissi-Prussak

Residents from those countries will be banned from entering Canada for 90 days starting Wednesday

International News via Reuters:

Canada and the Bahamas said on Tuesday they will temporarily ban residents from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda and South Sudan amid an Ebola outbreak.

Residents from those countries will be banned from entering Canada for 90 days starting Wednesday, the Canadian government said. It said the temporary border measure aimed to reduce the risk of Ebola entering and spreading within Canada.

The Bahamian government added that its entry restrictions would take immediate effect and remain in place for a period of 30 days, subject to review by the Caribbean country’s health ministry.

Reuters first reported that the archipelago would impose such a travel ban.

The World Health Organization on Friday raised to “very high” the risk of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola turning into a national outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and has declared the outbreak there and in Uganda an emergency ​of international concern.

Last week, Washington banned non-citizens who had traveled to the DRC, Uganda or South Sudan in recent weeks from ​entering the United States.

Canadian citizens, permanent residents and other foreign nationals who have been in affected areas in recent weeks and do not have symptoms will have to quarantine for 21 days from May 30, according to a statement from Canada’s public health agency.

The Bahamas also announced enhanced health screenings and possible quarantines for foreigners who were present in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda or South Sudan within 30 days of arriving in the Caribbean country.

No cases of Ebola have been reported in the U.S., Canada or the Bahamas.

Reporting by Jasper Ward in Washington and Ismail Shakil in Ottowa; editing by Michelle Nichols, Christian Schmollinger and Kate Mayberry

The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has delayed final approval that would allow Airbus jets to enter the country and be put into service for the past several months

International News via Reuters:

China has been stalling the approval of Airbus deliveries to signal impatience with European regulators’ delay in certifying Chinese-made COMAC aircraft, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has delayed final approval that would allow Airbus jets to enter the country and be put into service for the past several months, the report said, citing people familiar with the matter.

Airbus delivered the fewest commercial jets in the first quarter since 2009, according to the report. Chief Executive Guillaume Faury said last month the delay was due to an “administrative topic” that held up almost 20 aircraft destined for China.

On Airbus’ April 28 earnings call, Faury said the issue had been resolved and that the undelivered planes would be shipped in the second quarter.

Chief Financial Officer Thomas Toepfer said Airbus had built up around 5 billion euros ($5.82 billion) of inventory in the quarter, significantly more than the prior year, with the China delivery halt the main driver. He said the aircraft “had been built and were ready, but could not be delivered.”

In January, Reuters reported that Europe’s aviation safety regulator, EASA, had been carrying out test flights to assess COMAC’s C919 jet for certification, which would allow the Chinese planemaker to market the jet to Western airlines for the first time. At present, European and other Western carriers cannot fly COMAC’s jets.

In a statement, EASA said work on the validation of the C919 is “progressing with the full cooperation of COMAC and the CAAC,” but added that it could not comment on the expected timeline for completion of the validation project.

EASA safety certification would significantly expand COMAC’s global footprint, as the C919 competes directly with Airbus’ A320 and Boeing’s 737.

Airbus, CAAC and COMAC did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Reuters could not immediately verify the report.

($1 = 0.8592 euros)

Reporting by Anusha Shah in Bengaluru, Julie Zhu in Hong Kong and Sophie Yu in Beijing; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman, Christian Schmollinger and Thomas Derpinghaus