WASHINGTON - This weekend will find Donald Trump beaming into cameras as he stands next to French President Emmanuel Macron to celebrate the reopening of the historical Notre-Dame Cathedral five years after it was ravaged by a fire.
One month after being elected president and six weeks from taking the oath of office, it feels like America's 47th president is already in charge.
Mr Macron is the latest in a line of leaders wanting the attention of the man who has put nations on notice that he wants to redo how the US engages with the world.
On Nov 29, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau dropped in for dinner at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. He flew in four days after Trump threatened to impose a 25 per cent tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico if they do not stop the flow of illegal migrants and fentanyl across the border.
Data says less than 1 per cent of migrants and just 0.2 per cent of fentanyl enter the US via Canada, but Ottawa lost no time in pledging it would deploy additional drones, helicopters and border agents to soothe Trump's worries.
Economists say tariffs imposed by Canada's largest trading partner could cause a recession.
Over a banquet of crab cocktail and oysters, Mr Trudeau remonstrated that the tariffs would "kill" the Canadian economy.
According to Fox News, Trump responded by asking: "So your country can't survive unless it is ripping off the US to the tune of $100 billion (S$135 billion)?"
He then suggested that Canada could become the 51st US state, which caused the Prime Minister and others to laugh nervously, the conservative TV channel reported.
A senior member of Mr Trudeau's Cabinet clarified to the media on Dec 3 that Trump was only joking.
Esta historia es de la edición December 05, 2024 de The Straits Times.
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Esta historia es de la edición December 05, 2024 de The Straits Times.
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CALLIGRAPHY IS BIG WITH ARTIST
The boulders hiding in the alcove of Tong Yang-tze's (right) Taipei apartment testify to this Taiwanese calligrapher's daunting perfectionism. They are paper - remnants of discarded artworks, crumpled together like used tissues and soaked into inky wads of pulp. Hundreds of old drafts of writing, including many of her efforts to draw Chinese poetry at a monumental scale, have been recycled into these rocks over the years, most recently as she worked on her commission for the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which debuted on Nov 21.
Mattel sued over Wicked dolls with porn website link
LOS ANGELES - Mattel was sued on Dec 3 by a South Carolina mother for mistakenly putting a link to a pornographic website on packaging for dolls tied to the blockbuster movie Wicked.
Taiwanese musician-director Liu Chia-chang a composer of hit songs
Famed veteran Taiwanese musician and director Liu Chia-chang has died at the age of 81.
Actress Kristal Tin reveals lung cancer diagnosis
Former TVB actress Kristal Tin revealed on Instagram on Dec 3 that she has undergone successful surgery for lung cancer.
South Korean entertainment schedules up in the air
SEOUL - Schedules of performances and interviews in South Korea have been thrown into a state of uncertainty by a sudden martial law declaration that was lifted only a few hours later.
Host Dasmond Koh surprised by martial law edict while in Seoul for work
Upheaval in Seoul, South Korea
Squid Game returns to end 2024 with a bang
In this monthly column, The Straits Times' streaming picks for December include the long-awaited second season of the survivalist hit Squid Game (2021 to present) and its non-lethal equivalent.
Flow speaks Volumes, The Room Next Door a thin melodrama
In the wake of a devastating flood, a cat finds refuge with motley stranded animals on a tattered sailboat.
Funeral rites come alive in The Last Dance
The Hong Kong drama offers fascinating glimpses into the city's funeral traditions
Tolkien and anime work well together, says Japanese director
NEW YORK - It has been a decade since the work of fantasy author J.R.R. Tolkien last appeared on the big screen.
