Thank you very much, Chair.
Good morning, colleagues. Just as we begin, I will endeavour to introduce quickly my colleagues who are here also to provide this committee with information and testimony, as the case may require. We have, from the RCMP, Denis Beaudoin and Michael Duheme; my deputy minister, Rob Stewart; president of the CBSA John Ossowski, and, of course, Michelle Tessier from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service.
Members of the committee, it's my pleasure to join you today as you undertake your study assessing Canada's security posture in relation to Russia. I would like to begin with an acknowledgement of the shock I know we are all feeling about what is happening in Ukraine. No words can truly describe the horrors of war and devastation across the country and the desperation of those who are still alive and those who are struggling in the face of brutal attacks.
On May 4 I had the pleasure of meeting the ambassador designate of Ukraine to Canada, Ms. Yulia Kovaliv, to hear her concerns and to explore how Canada can further support her country. We also spoke about the need to counter Russian disinformation and foreign interference. Russia's illegal invasion into Ukraine will have deep and long-term geopolitical consequences, and it directly threatens the rules-based international order.
The situation has reinforced the fact that the international community is strongest when it acts together in defence of our shared values. It has also underlined that we are not immune from threats to our own security posture here in Canada. Hostile activities by foreign state actors like Russia pose a significant risk to Canada's national security. These activities are malicious cyber-activity, including cyber-attacks, among others; threats to our critical infrastructure, like our borders, bridges and power stations; the spread of mis- and disinformation; and espionage and foreign interference.
Canada takes all those threats very seriously, and the Public Safety portfolio is well equipped to deal with them in times of peace or in times of war, even though the number of threats and their complexity have increased in recent years. Within the Public Safety portfolio, CSIS, the RCMP, the CBSA and Public Safety Canada all play an important role.
CSIS investigates threats, advises the government and, as needed, takes steps to reduce threats to Canada's security.
The RCMP is also an important player in Canada's efforts to counter hostile activities by state actors. It investigates criminal offences related to foreign interference, as well as cybercrime and allegations of war crimes.
The CBSA works around the clock to ensure our borders are safe from a variety of threats. It also supports the government's commitment to provide eligible Ukrainian nationals with access to an expedited immigration process. The CBSA will also play a key role in enforcing the legislation I announced last week to ban sanctioned Russians from entering Canada. They shall have no safe haven here.
The CBSA works closely with CSIS and other partners to conduct security screenings and to mobilize liaison officers overseas to support where needed. Both the CBSA and RCMP play an important role in the sanctions framework to ensure we hold those complicit in Russia's invasion to account.
As members know, Canada has already introduced sanctions against 700 individuals and entities this year and adopted measures targeting specific goods and sectors, all in close coordination with the international community.
Mr. Chair, I want to touch briefly on how we're equipped to respond to some specific threats, namely, those to our cybersecurity and critical infrastructure. Malicious cyber-activities that target the systems underpinning our critical infrastructure are a constant concern. They impact businesses, individuals, our economy and all levels of government. We've known for a long time that Russia has significant cyber-capabilities and a demonstrated history of using them recklessly and irresponsibly.
Public Safety Canada works with other government departments and agencies as well as international allies to attribute malicious cyber-activity to state or state-sponsored actors when it can, with confidence, link the malicious activity to a particular actor. In Canada, we're fortunate to have a national cybersecurity strategy to protect Canadians. That has already led to the establishment of the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, a single authoritative source for expert technical advice and support for Canada and Canadians.
The centre provides public advisories, including on the Russian threat, and shares valuable cyber-threat information with Canadian critical infrastructure owners and operators. The cyber-strategy has also led to the creation of the national cyber coordination unit within the RCMP. That unit coordinates police operations against cybercriminals, including internationally, and works closely with law enforcement partners to address borderless cybercrime threats.
In light of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the government has enhanced engagements with critical infrastructure sectors. In fact, just a few weeks ago, we held a multi-sector network meeting with critical infrastructure stakeholders to discuss threats and mitigation measures for Canadian industry.
Mr. Chair, all of these efforts are bolstered by budget 2022, funding of nearly $700 million over five years, to support how we fight cybercrime and defend critical government and private sector systems and increase our collective resilience. We remain steadfastly committed to combatting foreign interference by any foreign state seeking to harm Canada.
We will continue to condemn Russia's invasion; we will continue to support the people of Ukraine, and we will continue to partner with allies around the world who share our commitment to peace, democracy and the rules-based international order.
Thank you.
