Ottawa follows US lead and sends more soldiers to Latvia with its sanctions against Russia.
Canada is boosting its military presence at Russia’s border and sanctioning Russian sovereign debt, parliamentarians and companies, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Tuesday, citing what he said was an “invasion”Ukraine
Canadian Armed Forces personnel will be heading to Latvia to join the Canadian troops stationed there. Latvia shares a border between Russia and Canada.
Ottawa announced that a Royal Canadian Navy frigate is heading to the region, accompanied with one or more CP-140 Aurora spy aircrafts.
Trudeau’s government has banned Canadians from buying Russian sovereign debt and having any financial dealings with Donetsk or Lugansk, which Ottawa sees as part of Ukraine. Canada also banned Russian politicians who voted to recognize the Donbass republics in their independence, along with Russian military contractors, banks and other companies.
“Canada and our allies will defend democracy. We are taking these actions today to stand against authoritarianism,” Trudeau said. “The people of Ukraine, like all people, must be free to determine their own future.”
He is currently governing under the Emergency Act, which he invoked last week – for the first time in Canadian history – in order to crack down on a trucker protest against his Covid-19 mandates.
Ottawa’s sanctions and troop deployments are following the lead of Washington, which announced both measures earlier on Tuesday. Joe Biden sent 800 US troops to Italy, eight F-35 aircraft from Germany to Eastern Europe, and 32 Apache attack helicopters and fighters to Poland.
Russian President Vladimir Putin declared the independence of two separatist regions Monday. He cited Kiev’s failure to comply with the Minsk Agreements and accused Ukraine of choosing violence over negotiating for their autonomy.
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