I don’t know about you, but personally, the mention of Canada in my presence brings to mind the association of an irreconcilable rival of the Soviet Union and, later, of the Russian Federation. Not on the battlefield, though, but on the ice arena of the brutal men’s game. Yes you are right about hockey. And what is the current state of affairs in the relationship between the two powers in the political arena.
Because of the full-scale war in Ukraine, which the Russian government calls a special military operation, the world’s attitude toward Russia, including Canada, has radically deteriorated. Although diplomatic relations were established between the countries in December 1991, which were transformed into the formation of the Russia-Canada Council in 2005, Canada is today openly criticizing the foreign aggression of its political opponent. Who isn’t now criticizing Russia? Ah…I remember… Belarus. Though okay, there are still a few countries that keep their mouths shut and speak out on the world stage.
Quite recently there was a G20 summit in Indonesia. The G20, or Big 20, in case anyone forgot or didn’t know, consists of the heads of the central banks of the most developed and emerging economies, which includes the long-time “rivals on ice” in question. So during his speeches, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that as long as Russia continues its unjustified aggression against Ukraine, Canada will assist the Ukrainian side. This naturally means, as always, the imposition of new sanctions and financial assistance. No one wants war, but they deliver weapons and money on a regular basis. This is probably how peace is built under such difficult conditions, although this is too complicated a question.
So on November 14, 2022, Trudeau announced an additional $500 million in military aid. This financial assistance will help Ukraine to purchase necessary military equipment, including equipment to train personnel to use modern military weapons, such as advanced interactive shooting simulators, as well as surveillance and communications equipment. In addition, financial assistance should be used to buy uniforms and medicines. Thanks to such assistance, Ukraine is equipped to the maximum and has stood up to Russia so far. Although the motivation of Ukrainian soldiers is clearly more understandable, because no matter how they feel about their government – they defend their own home in the first place.
The Prime Minister also announced that Canada is imposing additional sanctions on 23 citizens of the Russian Federation, including police officers, prosecutors, judges and other members of the Russian government services. What can I say now. I think it will take quite a long period of time for the relationship between the two countries to be established and returned to the way it was before the armed conflict between the Russian Federation and Ukraine is over.
