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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Kris Swales

Afternoon Update: Canada asks Australia to be ‘strategic cousins’; Albanese’s gift to Trump; and ‘veavage’ on the red carpet

Anthony Albanese and Canada’s prime minister Mark Carney arrive at a press conference outside Parliament House in Canberra on Thursday.
Anthony Albanese and Canada’s prime minister Mark Carney arrive at a press conference outside Parliament House in Canberra on Thursday. Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAP

Good afternoon.

Mark Carney has used a speech to parliament in Canberra to argue Canada and Australia will be stronger negotiating together with superpowers – including Donald Trump’s America – by acting as “strategic cousins” rather than competitors.

The Canadian prime minister and Anthony Albanese on Thursday both called for a de-escalation in the US and Israeli strikes on Iran, and for the Iranian regime to cease its retaliatory attacks across the region.

Their comments came as the US-Israel war on Iran entered a sixth day, with US forces reportedly ready to provide air support to Kurdish fighters if they enter the conflict. Follow the Guardian’s live coverage here.

Top news

In pictures

Five Australian projects have been shortlisted for the Royal Institute of British Architects International awards, with Candalepas Associates earning a rare double listing for two vastly different buildings.

What they said …

***

“The American people want answers on the Epstein files, and so do we.” – Republican representative Nancy Mace

Mace, a staunch critic of the US attorney general Pam Bondi over her handling of the files, posted on X after Bondi was subpoenaed as part of the ongoing investigation into Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.

Full Story

The election review the Liberals didn’t want you to see

When the Liberal party received a copy of the scathing assessment of its 2025 election loss, the federal executive decided to bury it. The attempt to hide it was short-lived, with Anthony Albanese tabling the troubling report in parliament this week.

Nour Haydar speaks to political reporter Krishani Dhanji about why some wanted the findings to stay secret and if the party will learn from its mistakes.

Listen to the episode here

Before bed read

Forget cleavage. A deep V plunging to the waist is the current style – as seen on Gwyneth Paltrow and many others this year. As we enter the era of “veavage”, Morwenna Ferrier investigates why it is suddenly so popular.

Daily word game

Today’s starter word is: CAMP. You have five goes to get the longest word including the starter word. Play Wordiply.

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