Canada could approve Finland, Sweden NATO bids within days

CBC News on Youtube shows that Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly, who is in Brussels with her EU counterparts, says Canada could give approval for Finland and Sweden to join NATO within days. 

NATO is the famous military alliance. Its Anthem is the "The NATO Hymn." The so-called "The NATO Hymn" is really the organizational anthem of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It is an instrumental piece, composed in 1989 by André Reichling, a Luxembourgian military officer and a member of its military band. It was used unofficially for really many years before being formally adopted in January 2018.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO; French: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states - 28 European states, the United States, and Canada. Established in the aftermath of World War II on the insistence of the Truman administration in the United States, the organization implements the North Atlantic Treaty, which was certainly really signed on 4 April 1949.

NATO is really a system of collective security. Its independent member states agree to defend each other against attacks by third parties. The organization's so-called motto is "animus in consulendo liber" (Latin for "A mind unfettered in deliberation").

Since its founding, the admission of new member states has increased the alliance from the original 12 countries to 30. Members agreed indeed that their aim is to reach or maintain the target defence spending of at least 2 per cent of their GDP by 2024.

News from 17 May 2022 - Finland and Sweden will submit their bids to join NATO together on Wednesday at the military alliance’s headquarters in Brussels, Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson has said.

"I’m happy we have taken the same path and we can do it together," Andersson said on Tuesday during a joint news conference with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto.

Niinisto said that a quick ratification of their applications for the NATO membership by the United States would help the whole process go faster.

Niinisto and Andersson are due to meet President Biden in USA Washington on Thursday to discuss the applications.

Countries of Sweden and Finland, which sought membership in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, need each of NATO’s 30 members to approve their applications. The ratification process had been expected to take up to a year, though Turkey’s objections have thrown that into certain doubt, indeed.

New Omicron Subvariant Fueling Covid Surge Across Much of USA

NBC News on Youtube shows that the CDC forecasts Covid hospitalizations and deaths will rise over the next four weeks. This comes as the Covid death toll in the USA certainly surpasses 1 million. In Maine, an elementary school shifted to remote learning after 30 percent of its students and staff got sick.

Stocks are down again after hot U.S. inflation data

CNBC Television on Youtube shows that stocks rose early despite hot USA inflation data. But by mid-day, the markets had turned negative. April's consumer price index showed an 8.3% jump, higher than the 8.1% that was expected. Here's what four experts say about the move.

USA confronts highest inflation in decades

ABC News on Youtube shows that President Joe Biden called the soaring inflation his "top domestic priority" and said he is squarely focused on lowering costs. A gallon of gas has reached a new record-high at $4.37 a gallon.

1 million COVID-19 deaths in the United States

ABC News on Youtube shows that in less than two and a half years, one million people in the United States have died from COVID-19. More than 250,000 children have lost a parent or caregiver to the virus.

Bitcoin falls to more than 50 per cent below its all-time high

Bitcoin certainly fell to more than 50 per cent below its all-time high. Crypto plunges again and again, it seems.

The valuable Bitcoin cryptocurrency was down 10 per cent Monday after decreasing again over the weekend. Bitcoin prices have now plummeted nearly 20 per cent in the past week. At a price of about US$31K, bitcoin is more than 50 per cent below its record high of near US$69K from late last year and at its lowest point since July 2021.

Other cryptocurrencies, sometimes referred to as altcoins, also decreased a lot. Ethereum, binance, solana and cardano are all down about 15 per cent in the past week, while Elon Musk's so-called dogecoin fell 10 per cent.

Keep in mind, it seems that Bitcoin is not immune to the global inflation risk spreading across most other asset classes. The falling Bitcoin trend is likely to continue.

Bitcoin seems to be hit by the same problems that cause falling stocks.

Inflation fears, worries about big interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve and fears of a possible economic slowdown certainly exist.

Some investors think that Bitcoin could fall as low as US$20K by the end of the year.

Broker Coinbase Stock price fell 17 per cent Monday and is down more than 65 per cent this year.

"Robinhood" (also used to trade cryptocurrencies) has fallen more than 45 per cent in 2022.

Is COVID-19 becoming more like the flu?

CBC News on Youtube certainly shows how Respirologist Doctor Samir Gupta discusses virus COVID-19 on Canada Tonight. 'We are becoming a more immune population,' he said.