The World This Hour - The World This Hour for 2025/03/18 at 23:00 EDT

Episode Date: March 19, 2025

The World This Hour for 2025/03/18 at 23:00 EDT

In Scarborough, there's this fire behind our eyes. A passion in our bellies. It's in the hearts of our neighbors. The eyes of our nurses. And the hands of our doctors. It's what makes Scarborough, Scarborough. In our hospitals, we do more than anyone thought possible. We've less than anyone could imagine.

But it's time to imagine what we can do with more. Join Scarborough Health Network and together, we can turn grit into greatness. Donate at lovescarborough.ca. From CBC News, the world this hour. I'm Neil Herland. The White House says it has taken what it calls the first step towards peace in Ukraine.

The statement comes after a highly anticipated phone call between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Briar Stewart reports. The call between the two leaders lasted for two and a half hours. At the end of it, Russia's president announced that he had agreed to a limited ceasefire, which would halt attacks on energy infrastructure for 30 days. The White House also says that negotiations around a maritime ceasefire aimed at stopping attacks on the Black Sea will begin immediately. While Washington says these moves should be considered a step towards peace, it falls far short of what

the U.S. had been pushing for and what Ukraine had already agreed to. A month-long truce across the entire front line. Vladimir Zelensky says while he supports a stop to attacks on energy infrastructure, he doesn't want talks about Ukraine to happen without Kiev. Prior Stuart, CBC News, London. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says from now on negotiations with the Palestinian militant group Hamas will happen only under fire. He says the strikes in Gaza Tuesday were

just the beginning. The Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza says those Israeli strikes killed more than 400 people. But those numbers don't distinguish between Hamas militants and Palestinian civilians. Chris Reyes has reaction from the United Nations. The UN's Undersecretary for Humanitarian Affairs Tom Fletcher briefed the Security Council on the aftermath. Fletcher reported many of those killed are women and children. What is gains made during the ceasefire destroyed. Israel is defending its actions and justifying its strikes against Hamas.

Israel Deputy UN Ambassador Jonathan Miller. Instead of asking why Hamas continues to prolong this war, instead of asking these questions, certain members choose instead to malign Israel. Palestinian envoy Riyad Mansour called on the council to hold Israel accountable. Stop this criminal action. Stop them from denying our people food in the month of Ramadan. Act. The U.S. sided with Israel and called on the council to condemn Hamas. The IDF confirmed that the strikes killed a Hamas leader in Gaza.

Chris Reyes, CBC News, New York. U.S. President Donald Trump is sharing his thoughts about the upcoming Canadian election. The conservative that's running is stupidly no friend of mine. Trump made the comments during an interview tonight with Laura Ingraham on Fox News. He says his main issue with Canada is the trade deficit with the U.S.

I think it's easier to deal actually with a liberal and maybe they're gonna win, but I don't really care. It doesn't matter to me at all. So your end game is what with them? My end game is I don't want to have a big deficit. Conservative leader Pierre Poliev is distancing himself from Trump amid the ongoing trade war with Washington. Mark Carney says his government is ready to ensure the security of Canada's North. The Prime Minister announced nearly $7 billion in funding

on his trip to Iqaluit, most of it for new measures. Canada's strong when we build constructive nation to nation partnerships. And it's strong when we work with Inuit, Métis and First Nations communities across the North and across the country. And that's why Canada's new government is taking action to protect the North, affirm our sovereignty, but to also develop our potential. Carney also announced more than $500 million for infrastructure funding in the North.

And splashdown, Crew crew nine back on Earth. NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunny Williams are home tonight after being stranded on the International Space Station. The SpaceX capsule softly entered the waters off the Florida coast. Their arrival coming nine months after a bungled test flight, it was expected to

be an eight-day mission, but issues with the propulsion system delayed their return to Earth. And that is your World This Hour. For CBC News, I'm Neal Herland.