FOG BLOG CANADA LOG: PM TRUDEAU SPEAKS WITH UKRAINE'S VOLODYMYR ZENLENSKY!
Zelensky asks Trudeau to increase pressure on Russia after Canada circumvents sanctions against Kremlin Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky implored Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to escalate international pressure on the Kremlin after Canada circumvented its own sanctions against Russia to help European allies.
In early July, the federal government announced it would release Russian-owned gas turbines that had been stranded in a Montreal repair facility because of Canada’s sanctions against Moscow. The agreement to return the turbines also allows for the import, repair and re-export of the equipment for up to two years.
The move angered Kyiv and the Ukrainian diaspora in Canada. At a protest on Parliament Hill on Sunday, supporters of Ukraine said that with the decision to release the turbines, the Trudeau government is now helping to fund Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine.
Just before the demonstration in the capital, the Prime Minister and Mr. Zelensky spoke for the first time since Canada bypassed some of the sanctions meant to put pressure on Mr. Putin to end his war. Canada’s July 9 decision to grant Russia a reprieve fell amid an increasing barrage of attacks that appeared to target civilians, including at universities in Mykolaiv and community buildings in Vinnytsia.
In a terse statement posted to Twitter after his Sunday call with Mr. Trudeau, Mr. Zelensky said the West needs to do more – not less to help Ukraine. “The international position on sanctions must be principled,” he said, “After the terrorist attacks in Vinnytsia, Mykolaiv, Chasiv Yar, etc., the pressure must be increased, not decreased.”
His statement did not directly mention Canada’s release of the Russian turbines used in gas pipelines. Last week, the Ukrainian President called Ottawa’s decision “absolutely unacceptable” but Mr. Trudeau and Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland have defended the move, which Germany had asked for. Since Russia launched its war on Ukraine in February, the European Union has spent the ensuing months reconciling its opposition to the war with its need for Russian fuel. The resulting uncertainty has plunged the continent into an energy crisis, with Germany bracing for gas rationing during the winter months.
Russia last month cited the delayed return of the turbine equipment, which Germany’s Siemens Energy had been servicing in Canada, as the reason behind its decision to reduce the flow of natural gas through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline. The pipeline, which runs from Russia to Germany, was operating at 40-per-cent capacity.
Kyiv has warned that the move would embolden Moscow to keep using its ability to choke off Europe’s fuel supplies as a weapon. Last week, the Ukrainian government summoned a senior Canadian diplomat to hear Kyiv’s objections to Ottawa’s decision, which has also sparked parliamentary hearings.
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