House of Commons Hansard #153 of the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was chair.

Topics

Operation UNIFIERGovernment Orders

9:10 p.m.

NDP

Linda Duncan NDP Edmonton Strathcona, AB

Madam Chair, it is my privilege to stand to speak to this take-note debate.

First, I want to speak about the Edmonton Ukrainian Canadian community and how stalwart it has been across the country in standing up and giving support to their families overseas. It is absolutely incredible and it keeps pressure on us, getting us to speak out. I particularly want to mention Daria Luciw who is the former past president of the Edmonton UCC. She has been incredible in reaching out to me and telling me the views of the Edmonton UCC.

It is absolutely important that everyone in this place and across Canada takes the time and the opportunity available through the Ukrainian Canadian community to inform us about historic travesties that have gone on in Ukraine. I have had the privilege of participating in the Holodomor commemorations each year. There is a Holodomor travelling exposition, but there is also the Bitter Harvest film. I encourage people see it in the theatres. It talks about the crisis that Ukraine suffered in the past and continues to suffer.

A new play has been produced in Alberta, with the support of St. John's Institute, called Blood of our Soil. It is the most powerful presentation that I have seen of the long history of travesties that the people of Ukraine have suffered from the time of Stalin through Hitler and now under Putin. I hope the play will come to Ottawa.

As the Minister of Foreign Affairs has advised, Ukrainians were early settlers to our Prairies and many of them descended from the train in Edmonton Strathcona, becoming tillers of the soil, and now holding places in all the governments of our country. It is to their credit. As a number of speakers here have said, it is important for us all to stand up for Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty, and speak out in support of Ukraine.

My colleagues and I support Operation Unifier continuing. Many have been waiting for this decision to be made and finally it has been. My guess is that two years probably will not be enough unless Mr. Putin backs off and takes away the support of what is going on in eastern Ukraine.

We celebrate and honour the commitment of Canadian troops, some of which include the Princess Patricia from Edmonton. I am very proud they have gone overseas again to share their skills and professionalism with the Ukrainian troops, many of which are completely untrained. I have met many of the young men and women who head off to the eastern edge of Ukraine with absolutely no training, putting their own lives at risk.

However, as has been mentioned in the House, it is equally important not only that we give this direct assistance to build the army and the troops of Ukraine, but that we give increased support to the development of a democracy and restoration of the rule of law in the country. I spent a good deal of time over the four or five times I have visited in meeting with human rights advocates and with independent media that are struggling to be a voice for ordinary Canadians. Governments in the local area need our assistance in teaching them how they can work effectively with civil society. There are many young Ukrainians who are desperate to work hand in glove with the Ukrainian government in teaching them how to be more democratic. It is absolutely critical that we build that democracy if it is to have any hope of getting the confidence of the people in eastern Ukraine, that they can have confidence in their government to represent them.

I also want to mention a number of specific actions that could be taken. Disappointingly, the previous Conservative government gave short shrift to the imposition of sanctions. My colleagues in this place have continued to push to extend the sanctions so they are on par with the sanctions imposed by the U.S. and the EU, particularly Igor Sechin and Vladimir Yakunin, and to get rid of the various existing loopholes that allow Canadians to work with these discreditable entities in Russia, which help to foment and support this war.

Again, we want to give thanks to the troops that are there and to let the people of Ukraine know we are here to support them and that we will hold the Liberal government accountable for delivering on the many promises that it makes.

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9:15 p.m.

Fredericton New Brunswick

Liberal

Matt DeCourcey LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs

Madam Chair, I and the government also share our thanks for the great work of the Canadian Armed Forces. Many of the women and men who will join Operation Unifier will at one time pass through 5th Canadian Division Support Base Gagetown in the riding I have the honour to represent. They will do important work in helping Ukraine maintain its sovereignty, stability, and security in this current situation.

Operation Unifier is one part of a whole-of-government approach to demonstrate our steadfast support for our friend and ally Ukraine. I would ask the hon. member opposite if she would agree that this whole-of-government support, which includes non-lethal military equipment support, support for humanitarian assistance for those affected in the conflict, support for a range of initiatives to address immediate stabilization and security measures, bilateral development assistance that focuses on democracy, human rights, the rule of law, and support for civil society, as well as support for economic growth, including the signing of the free trade agreement with Ukraine, is the right direction for the government to demonstrate its support for our good friend and ally, Ukraine.

Operation UNIFIERGovernment Orders

9:15 p.m.

NDP

Linda Duncan NDP Edmonton Strathcona, AB

Madam Chair, I would like to respond by giving the hon. member a few specifics. Let us go beyond the rhetoric that we will give a whole-of-government support. Let me give a few examples. Would it not be wonderful if the government of the day stepped up and said that it would put the funds in to return Ukrainian interns to the country. That would be one specific thing that could be done that our friendship association would really appreciate. I cannot understate the value of that exercise. I had up to six interns that came to work with me in my office. They have all gone back and are contributing, working hand in glove with the government.

Second, we need to give support to the independent media. We need to give a lot more support through CIDA to civil society. It is civil society in Ukraine that is going to create a more democratic government and will hold it accountable, while supporting its own troops and to be building a society that Ukrainians want to have.

Those are two of the specific recommendations I would make in that regard.

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9:20 p.m.

Green

Elizabeth May Green Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC

Madam Chair, I applaud the remarks of my friend, the member for Edmonton Strathcona. The focus on media and civil society, the people of Ukraine who are crying out for help, humanitarian aid, and really in the circumstances we face right now, that focus is one which in addition to the trade the minister spoke of, the economic stability will help. Training Ukrainian soldiers, from my point of view, is the riskier part of the equation. However, supporting civil society is something we should unquestionably be redoubling.

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9:20 p.m.

NDP

Linda Duncan NDP Edmonton Strathcona, AB

Madam Chair, one of the things the Government of Canada could do is support the interaction and trade between farmers and small business in Canada with farmers and small business in Ukraine. We always talk about the backbone of the Canadian economy being small business, yet what are we doing to support and foment that kind of trade?

When I travelled in Ukraine and I talked to local governments, civil society, and small business, they are looking for that kind of support. Are we simply going to support the oligarchs and get Canadian or American companies matched up with the oligarchs to exploit gas, or are we going to do something different and lend direct support to small business and Ukrainian Canadian communities here to build that in Ukraine?

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9:20 p.m.

NDP

Randall Garrison NDP Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke, BC

Madam Chair, I would like to ask the hon. member whether she shares my concern that in this climate of cuts to international aid budgets around the world, hopefully Canada will not participate in this week, and the increasing humanitarian needs in Ukraine that it will be forgotten in the rush to serve some of the places that get more attention in the media.

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9:20 p.m.

NDP

Linda Duncan NDP Edmonton Strathcona, AB

Madam Chair, I would like to thank my colleague for raising that. A number of people have talked about the number of refugees. Not only do we need to get humanitarian aid to the people in the Donbass region and into the Crimea, we need to support those people who have basically become refugees in their own country.

We know we have a crisis across our border. We know there are announcements by the new American government, saying it will severely cut foreign aid. We need to take a close look at our foreign aid budget. I hope in the coming budget this week we in fact see substantial increases, because we have a crisis going on in Africa, but we also have a crisis going on in Ukraine. They are family members of many Canadians, and we need to be ensuring that we are reaching out to support them.

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9:20 p.m.

Vancouver South B.C.

Liberal

Harjit S. Sajjan LiberalMinister of National Defence

Madam Chair, I welcome this opportunity to highlight the extraordinary work of our military members in advancing Operation Unifier, and to proudly stand behind them and our government's decision to renew this campaign in Ukraine. I am also happy that we are debating this issue tonight, because I had the immense privilege of having seen our outstanding soldiers in action, working alongside our allies.

Support for Ukraine is important to Canadians and in particular the Ukrainian Canadian community.

On Thursday and Friday of last week, I took part in town hall meeting with the Ukrainian Canadian communities in Regina and in Winnipeg, hosted by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress. Leaving Ottawa to meet and speak with Ukrainian Canadians was very important to me. They follow and feel more than anyone else in our country the horrible conflict to which Ukraine is being subjected. During these community meetings, I spoke at length about Operation Unifier and Canada's unwavering support for Ukraine.

I also had the opportunity to respond to a wide range of questions, and one point I made clear was that this was not a partisan issue. All parties in the House agree that Canada will always stand shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression.

I heard first hand the gratitude that Ukrainian Canadians felt for the tremendous work of our troops on Operation Unifier.

This time last year, I spent several days with our troops serving on Operation Unifier. I observed first hand the skills and determination our soldiers brought to this mission. I was extremely impressed with the level of training they were providing the Ukrainian armed forces. I was equally heartened by the passion the Ukrainian soldiers demonstrated in their training, and their appreciation for the experience and expertise our military trainers provided. All Canadians can be extremely proud of the work of our soldiers to defend our allies to help secure Ukraine, protect its sovereignty, and contribute to global stability.

Since the summer of 2015, 200 Canadian women and men stationed in Ukraine have trained more than 3,200 Ukrainian soldiers. The Canadian Armed Forces delivered over 90 training programs in that time. Their courses have covered everything from infantry to small team training to more specialized capabilities, such as explosive ordinance disposal, military policing, medical training, and modernized logistics. This invaluable training is building a knowledge base within the Ukrainian military, knowledge that is enabling the Ukrainian soldiers to take on greater responsibility for their country's sovereignty, security, and stability. The critical skills they have gained are strengthening the Ukrainian armed forces and reinforcing the strong bond that unites our countries.

I conveyed the pride of Canadians in these achievements to our service members during a town hall while I was in Ukraine last year. I thanked them for their professionalism and determination to advance democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. That appreciation was echoed by the Ukrainian leaders I met during my visit, the mayor and governor of Lviv as well as the Ukrainian defence minister, General Poltorak.

General Poltorak told the media, “It is common knowledge that true friendship is tested during hard times. Therefore are truly thankful to Canada for its support of our military from the very beginning of the conflict.” He continued by saying, “Canada has provided enormous assistance in training Ukrainian military and supplying equipment to strengthen our technical capacity...I am certain that advisory support which has been and continues to be provided by Canada is the best way to ensure that reforms will be successful.”

Everyone we met expressed their gratitude for Canada's help in training Ukrainian troops and building their country's capacity to defend its borders. Most of all, they thanked us for demonstrating unwavering support for Ukraine. Protecting Ukraine's sovereignty is fundamental, and it is vital to its identity, economic growth, and social stability. This sentiment has been repeated in this country by the Ukrainian ambassador to Canada, Mr. Shevchenko. He recently told the media, “Every day when your men and women train our officers and soldiers, it means saved lives.”

Our soldiers know better than anyone that sustaining this support is essential, especially now as Ukraine faces increased provocation from Russia.

We have recently seen the worst outbreak of violence in eastern Ukraine since 2015. Members of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs can attest, from their visit to Ukraine last January, that Russia refuses to respect Ukraine's sovereign territory.

Canada has consistently condemned the Russian Federation's violation of the territorial integrity of Ukraine. Last summer, while visiting Ukraine, the Prime Minister repeatedly reiterated that Canada stands firmly beside Ukraine, because that is what allies do.

Our work in Ukraine is just the latest chapter in our forces' proud heritage, proving yet again that when our friends need us, Canada is there. That is why we will build on the foundation we have established under Operation Unifier. We will continue to provide critical military assistance through to the end of March 2019.

As we thank the soldiers who have achieved so much during the latest phase of this mission, the next rotation of Canadian Armed Forces service women and men has deployed. Again, it is made up mostly of the members of the 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group, based in Edmonton, Alberta, many of whom I have personally served with, and their commanding officers as well. These highly skilled soldiers will carry on Canada's efforts to increase Ukraine's ability to maintain its sovereignty, security, and stability. In practical terms, this means a continuation of tactical soldier training. This involves individual weapons training, marksmanship, tactical movement, explosive threat recognition, communication, combat survival, and ethics training.

We will continue to train Ukrainian soldiers on explosive ordnance and improvised explosive device disposal. We will continue to teach force and basic investigative techniques as part of military police training. We will continue to provide casualty evacuation and combat first aid training as well as ongoing logistics system modernization.

We will also support strategic institutional reform of Ukraine's defence establishment. Our goal is to enhance peace support operations, interoperability, military capacity building, and professional development.

Canada's assistance to Ukraine includes the purchase and shipment of non-lethal military equipment. We have already delivered equipment such as tactical communications systems, a mobile field hospital, explosive ordnance disposal equipment, tactical medical kits, and night-vision goggles. Our next shipment will include first aid kits, military police training materials, and more explosive ordnance disposal equipment. This is vital equipment that will enhance the capability of the Ukrainian armed forces while at the same time reducing the financial burden on the Ukrainian government.

March 2017 marks three years since the Russian Federation's annexation of Crimea, an act condemned by countries the world over. Since 2014, the conflict has killed close to 10,000 people. Canada did not stand idly by when duty called. We joined Ukraine, the United States, and the United Kingdom under the Multinational Joint Commission. We demonstrated our reliability as a partner to our allies and our firm commitment to European security. Through Operation Unifier, we sent a clear signal of deterrence to Russia, and we also sent a strong message of solidarity and support to Ukraine.

Canada was the first country to recognize Ukraine's independence in 1991. All these years later, we continue to demonstrate global leadership by helping to address ongoing global threats.

Canadian troops with Operation Unifier are already having a meaningful impact in Ukraine. They will keep doing so in the years ahead. Canada will remain at the forefront of the international community's response to Russian aggression in Ukraine, and I, for one, could not be prouder.

Operation Unifier is just part of what we have done, and are doing, to support our allies and partners in eastern Europe. We are also directly involved in central and eastern Europe, in support of our NATO allies, through Operation Reassurance. Last July, the Prime Minister announced that Canada has renewed Operation Reassurance until March of 2019.

In June, we will be deploying 455 Canadian army personnel in Latvia. Canada will be one of four framework nations to establish and lead a multinational battle group. This activity is part of the alliance's enhanced forward presence in central and eastern Europe. I would also like to mention that we have a frigate on an ongoing rotational basis in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea and periodic air policing.

Deepening our engagement with Canada's international partners and allies is important to this government. It was top of mind for Canadians during our defence policy consultations last year. As a result, we will see this important theme reflected throughout the forthcoming new defence policy.

I now welcome further discussion and debate on today's take note debate topic from all my hon. colleagues on both sides of the aisle.

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9:30 p.m.

Conservative

James Bezan Conservative Selkirk—Interlake—Eastman, MB

Madam Chair, I congratulate the minister on extending the Conservative-initiated mission, Operation Unifier.

I know that the minister visited the troops last year. He invited me to accompany him, but unfortunately, I was ill and was not able to be there. It is something I hope he and I can do again in the near future.

As everyone in this House always recognizes, our troops are second to none. Their skills and abilities, as the minister knows first hand, are easily transferrable, and our Canadian Armed Forces are always up to the job of helping those who want to better themselves and defend themselves, and in the case of Ukraine, who want to train to NATO standards. I thank the minister for extending this mission for the next two years.

Ukraine has been asking the minister, as well as the government, to sign the Canada-Ukraine defence co-operation agreement so that we can take this relationship even beyond what it is in Operation Unifier by expanding exchanges of officers and bringing their trainers here so they can get even more involved in the Canadian institution and the military culture we have here, which really is, in my opinion, the leader in the NATO nations. Something Ukraine, of course, aspires to is having NATO membership at some point in the future. Of course, they have to train to the standard. They have to make sure that they have that ability.

Will the minister commit to signing that agreement? Will he also take a serious look at providing lethal weapons to the Ukrainian military to defend Ukrainian territory, as the government has done with the Kurdish Peshmerga in fighting ISIS?

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9:35 p.m.

Liberal

Harjit S. Sajjan Liberal Vancouver South, BC

Madam Chair, hopefully, next time we are able to plan a trip, the member will have good health and will be able to join us.

On the last trip, the defence co-operation agreement topic came up. In fact, we were actually able to move ahead, but there were a few questions on the Ukrainian government side, which we were waiting for. They have been resolved. Regrettably, it is now just a matter of getting the timing right, with my counterparts, to move ahead with the defence co-operation agreement. It is just a matter of time before we do that.

When it comes to training, I think we in this House can all agree on the wonderful work our men and women have done on the ground. It continues to evolve. In addition to the work they do, we also work with the nations that are providing support as part of the joint commission. The requests that come to the government come from the joint commission.

In terms of higher capacity building, we have also assigned our government's representative, Jill Sinclair, as the U.S. and the U.K. have done, and will look at helping them modernize the Ukrainian armed forces to bring them up to NATO standards. A lot of work needs to be done, we have to admit, but we are committed to doing it.

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9:35 p.m.

NDP

Randall Garrison NDP Esquimalt—Saanich—Sooke, BC

Madam Chair, I thank the minister for his speech tonight and for his extension of Operation Unifier. New Democrats, too, agree with the other parties here in the House that this is an important mission for us to undertake.

One of the problems we have, though, in eastern Ukraine, is that the conflict is being made worse by the illegal flow of small arms and light weapons. It was last June that the government promised to accede to the Arms Trade Treaty, and we were promised that legislation would be introduced by December.

When I was speaking about my position on this, I promised to pass along this question to the next government speaker, so I am going to ask the minister. What is taking so long on the accession to the Arms Trade Treaty, which would help not just in eastern Ukraine but in other conflicts around the world?

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9:35 p.m.

Liberal

Harjit S. Sajjan Liberal Vancouver South, BC

Madam Chair, we are looking at many different options in terms of how we can support the Ukraine government and the Ukraine armed forces.

There is a considerable amount of complexity, as members will know, when it comes to a conflict like this, in how we can support the government. The defence co-operation agreement is one example of that. We are looking at additional options.

We have representatives on the ground who are directly in contact with their counterparts. In fact, our representative has an office very close to the minister of defence. They are working very closely to figure out the best way to provide support. I am working very closely with the Minister of Foreign Affairs to look at all options in providing that support.

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9:35 p.m.

Conservative

Pierre Paul-Hus Conservative Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC

Madam Chair, I would like to ask the minister again if he is thinking of asking his government to add Ukraine to the Automatic Firearms Country Control List and of providing the Ukrainian forces with lethal weapons.

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9:35 p.m.

Liberal

Harjit S. Sajjan Liberal Vancouver South, BC

Madam Chair, we are looking at many different options, as I stated, for supporting the Ukrainian armed forces and the government. The defence co-operation agreement is one of them, and I look forward to having further discussions. When I have further information, I will be able to provide it directly to the member and even to this House.

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9:35 p.m.

Liberal

Borys Wrzesnewskyj Liberal Etobicoke Centre, ON

Madam Chair, the minister referenced his visit to Yavoriv, the base where Operation Unifier is taking place. It is a training mission. However, when I was honoured to visit with the Prime Minister, and then again in September, one of the interesting things I heard over and over from Canadian officers was, number one, how highly motivated these Ukrainian soldiers were. Most were volunteers, but not volunteers in the sense that we imagine, as novices not familiar with the front. They were coming back from a front, where there was trench warfare and deadly artillery barrages. I heard from our Canadian officers that they were not just training; they were learning.

How has that information informed our mission in Latvia as we take the lead in a NATO mission in a front-line state right on the Russian border?

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9:40 p.m.

Liberal

Harjit S. Sajjan Liberal Vancouver South, BC

Madam Chair, the relationship our men and women are building with the Ukrainian armed forces is unique. In fact, when I witnessed the training, I even asked if we needed to provide these small arms to have the training. When I was driving through the ranges, they were doing such realistic training. It was quite impressive. In fact, it actually brought me some déjà vu moments from my time in Afghanistan. However, it was the relationships that were being built.

It was the troops on the ground that actually identified the lessons learned from the front, and one of them, in particular, was the need for first aid training. It is essential, when we look at the fighting on the ground. Those types of skills sometimes get left out. When that was identified by the Canadian troops, our Canadian leadership was able to set it up. I witnessed one of the teams that had finished training, the final scenario, the how-to, when someone is injured and goes to a casualty collection point. For their graduation they actually got the medical kits we provided.

It also goes to show how deep the training on the ground actually evolves. The explosive ordnance training was truly impressive as well.

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9:40 p.m.

Green

Elizabeth May Green Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC

Madam Chair, very briefly, I would ask the Minister of National Defence to please convey thanks to all the forces he controls and that he has the honour to serve, if I can put it that way, and I do not think he sees himself in a top-down role, for the role they serve in Ukraine. All Canadians are in their debt.

How do you see the future of Ukraine within the NATO alliance? Is that something--

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9:40 p.m.

NDP

The Acting Speaker NDP Carol Hughes

I just want to remind the member to address the questions to the chair and not to the speaker.

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9:40 p.m.

Green

Elizabeth May Green Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC

Thank you, Madam Chair. I am a bit more relaxed in the take-note debate, and I will take note. To the minister, does the government consider Ukraine joining NATO to be something that should be approached cautiously?

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9:40 p.m.

Liberal

Harjit S. Sajjan Liberal Vancouver South, BC

First, Madam Chair, I thank the member for recognizing the service. Many members in this House have served, and we can all be proud of our service, but we do not wear a uniform anymore. As I said, as the Minister of National Defence I have the huge privilege of being in this role, and it is now my job to serve them.

When it comes to our NATO meetings, there is not a NATO meeting I go to that I do not get together with my other colleagues to have a separate meeting on Ukraine. We have very detailed discussions. The goal is always to de-escalate the situation. We will always continue to figure out their way of thinking.

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9:40 p.m.

Conservative

Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON

Madam Chair, I will be splitting my time with the member for Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles.

Time is short in this take-note debate and we have heard the appropriate exchanges of compliments back and forth between members of all parties in the House who know through either service or experience exactly what is at stake in Ukraine, but I will cut to the chase.

We in the opposition have long been worried that the Liberal government's commitment to the defence of Ukraine was half-hearted and fading. That would apply to not all Liberal MPs, as I have just said, but to the actions and attitudes of the government as a whole.

Our concerns were realized two weeks ago, when the government, after ignoring appeals from Ukraine since last summer, finally announced an eleventh-hour bare-bones extension of Operation Unifier. This extension does not speak to the brutal new realities, the recent deadly surge in the Russian-backed war on Ukraine. The extension does not respond to Ukraine's request for an expansion of the Operation Unifier training mission. The extension does not answer the outgunned Ukrainians' appeal for defensive weapons and the restoration of satellite battlefield imagery. The extension does not address the long-overdue signing and implementation of the Canada-Ukraine defence co-operation agreement. The extension did not mention Ukraine's request for additional support for the widely recommended expansion of the OSCE monitor teams to report on violations of the Minsk agreement.

The Liberals have not spoken a word of increased humanitarian assistance to the thousands of newly displaced eastern Ukrainian civilians driven from their homes by the recent Russian-directed surge, adding to the more than a million and a half internally displaced men, women, and children and the three-year death toll of 10,000.

Canada's commitment to the defence of Ukraine might not rate high on the Liberals' list of public opinion poll-driven priorities, but the Liberals, and in fact all Canadians, need to remember why Russia illegally invaded and still occupies the Ukrainian autonomous Republic of Crimea, why Russia invaded and still supports the euphemistically described rebellion in eastern Ukraine, and why the toll of death, displacement, and destruction continues there. It all comes down to democratic choice.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, the people of Ukraine, along with the populations of many of the former oppressed Soviet republics, chose democracy and chose the west. The western democracies stepped up after Russia's bellicose response to Ukraine's revolution of dignity, the Russian invasion and occupation of Crimea, and Russia's invasion and arming of rebel separatists in eastern Ukraine. Western governments, including Canada's, imposed a range of sanctions on Russia, and in December 2014, Canada committed with the United States and other countries to provide coordinated training assistance through Joint Task Force Ukraine, with the Canadian element known as Operation Unifier.

As we have heard tonight, since deployment in the summer of 2015, the joint task force has trained more than 3,200 Ukrainian soldiers through more than 90 courses.

The Liberals claim their commitment remains strong, but these words often ring hollow. For example, just last December, we saw amazingly blatant duplicity when, on the same day that the Liberals sported traditional Ukrainian embroidered shirts, vyshyvankas, to brag in debate about Liberal support for Ukraine in the form of the free trade agreement negotiated by both our Conservative and Liberal governments, these same Liberals had the temerity to vote against Ukraine in a whipped vote against recognition of the historical deadly Surgunlik—the Soviet Tatar genocide—and Russia's current abuse and deportation of ethnic Tatars from the illegally occupied Ukrainian autonomous Republic of Crimea.

That is why we in the official opposition are so disappointed in what I referred to earlier as the Liberals' eleventh-hour bare-bones extension of Operation Unifier. It falls short of our Conservative government's original commitment to Ukraine. It falls short of what Ukraine has requested and in fact appealed for. It falls short of Canada standing up strongly for a democratic Ukraine.

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9:45 p.m.

Liberal

Borys Wrzesnewskyj Liberal Etobicoke Centre, ON

Madam Chair, I would like to put a question for the hon. member for Thornhill.

Numerous human rights organizations, and in fact even the OSCE monitors, have regularly reported and documented that in the Donbass and the so-called LPR and DPR, as well as in Crimea, there are extrajudicial arrests. It is clearly documented that those arrested and incarcerated are tortured while under arrest and that there are summary executions. There are untold numbers who have just disappeared.

My question for the hon. member is this: would he support a designation of the so-called LPR and DPR as terrorist organizations?

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9:50 p.m.

Conservative

Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON

Madam Chair, I thank my colleague for his continuing efforts over the years in support of Canada's strong and unqualified support for the people of Ukraine who have chosen a democratic course.

With regard to the atrocities, we know atrocities are being committed by a number of groups, some of them organized, some of them directed, some of them spontaneous as a result of the worst tendencies of human nature in areas of conflict, some of them with regard to elements of very basic organized crime, but I think that what is required with fulfillment of the Minsk agreements is greater access for human rights organizations, meaningful monitoring, meaningful investigation of the complete range of atrocities—some of them better documented than others—a very real assignment of blame, and prosecution as crimes against humanity or crimes of war.

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9:50 p.m.

NDP

Linda Duncan NDP Edmonton Strathcona, AB

Madam Chair, I know the hon. member has spoken long and hard about increasing support to Ukraine and on behalf of Ukrainian Canadians. I wonder if the member might be willing to break with the position of his own party when it was in government, a position that I understand is continuing. There are many corrupt officials involved directly with Putin against whom it would not issue sanctions, including Sechin and Yakunin. There are still Canadian companies that are doing business with these characters. Is the member willing to step forth and say that it is time that we expanded the sanctions against all people who are aligned with Putin?

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March 20th, 2017 / 9:50 p.m.

Conservative

Peter Kent Conservative Thornhill, ON

Madam Chair, I thank my hon. colleague for a very reasonable question. In fact it is true, and had I had more time I would have mentioned that the mistakes of one government with regard to names left off the list of sanctioned individuals should not be used as an excuse by the current government to continue to keep those names off the list. Igor Sechin is a prime example. As the brutal left-hand man of Vladimir Putin and the head of Russia's oil company, he has in fact, just in the last couple of months, managed to sell 20% of that company, despite U.S. and other sanctions, through a very dark series of negotiated deals. That is exactly why I would suggest that the names of Vladimir Yakunin and Igor Sechin be considered by the government today to be added to the list of those sanctioned Russian individuals.