Support for Ukraine
At the beginning of 2015, the UCC welcomed the announcement by Minister of International Trade Ed Fast of more than $50 million in additional support by Canada to Ukraine during a trade and development mission to Kyiv on January 25-26. Minister Fast met with Aivaras Abromavicius, Ukraine’s minister of economic development and trade; Oleksiy Pavlenko, minister of agrarian policy and food; and Natalie Jaresko, minister of finance.
Minister Fast announced that the provision of 100 Improved First Aid Kits (IFAKs) has been earmarked for funding as part of the assistance package that had been announced on November 26, 2014, by Minister of National Defense Rob Nicholson to the Ukrainian World Congress (UWC) Patriot Defense project, which has trained over 12,000 Ukrainian soldiers in first aid and distributed over 9,500 IFAKs. “The IFAKs Canada is providing will help save the lives of brave Ukrainian soldiers,” stated Ulana Suprun, the UWC’s director of humanitarian initiatives.
Ministers Fast and Abromavicius also announced that Canada and Ukraine will conclude a free trade agreement. “Preparatory work is currently under way by our officials for a full round of face-to-face negotiations, in Kyiv, in the near future. The Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement will be an ambitious and comprehensive agreement, creating new market opportunities and predictable conditions for businesses,” they noted in a joint statement. That agreement was signed on July 14 during a visit to Canada by Ukraine’s Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk.
The support for Ukraine by Canada announced on January 26 totalled more than $50 million, and included: $19.7 million to Société de Coopération pour le Développement International, to promote the growth of small and medium-sized dairy businesses in Ukraine; $13.5 million over six years to address the limitations of small and medium-sized grain producers in Ukraine; $18.8 million to Agriteam Canada transitional and long-term governance and economic reforms in a more inclusive and transparent way; and up to $100,000 in additional support to the Economic Advisory Council.
“The economic and development aid, as well as expert advice that Canada is providing will help Ukraine’s fragile economy. As Russia wages a brutal war on Ukraine, Canada continues to show that its commitment to helping the Ukrainian people defend their independence and freedom will not waver,” stated Olena Koszarny, chair of the UCC’s Ukraine Advisory Council.
On February 17, new economic sanctions imposed by Canada targeted 37 Russian and Ukrainian individuals as well as 17 Russian and Ukrainian entities. Prime Minister Harper said Canada “remains steadfast in its commitment to stand with the people of Ukraine in the face of the Putin regime’s ongoing military aggression, which has already cost the lives of more than 5,300 people.” RFE/RL reported that the move was made in coordination with the European Union and the United States, which have also punished Russia for what they say is its military backing of the separatists in eastern Ukraine.
On June 29, still more economic sanctions and travel bans were announced. The individuals affected included Aleksandr Dugin, a leader of the Eurasian Youth Union. The entities subject to economic sanctions were: Gazprom, Gazprom Neft, Surgutneftegas and Transneft Eurasian Youth Union. Canada also imposed a ban on Russian-occupied Crimea that prohibited the import and export and the transfer, provision or communication of technical data or services; provision or acquisition of financial and other services related to tourism; and the docking of cruise ships. Mr. Harper stated, “Until there is real peace, until occupying forces are withdrawn, and until Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty is restored, there must be ongoing consequences for President Putin’s regime.”
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Harper visited Ukraine on June 6 in advance of the G-7 summit in Germany. He was accompanied by UCC leaders, including President Grod. As noted in a June 23 statement by Ms. Koszarny of the UCC’s Ukraine Advisory Council, the visit once again demonstrated “that Canada stands firmly beside Ukraine.” Ms. Koszarny also noted: “His statements clearly set forth Canada’s position: ‘I don’t think Russia under Vladimir Putin belongs in the G7. Period.’ Prime Minister Stephen Harper told the Associated Press. ‘Canada would very, very strongly oppose Putin ever sitting around that table again. It would require consensus to bring Russia back and that consensus will just not happen.’ ”
Presidential Administration of Ukraine
President Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine and Prime Minister Stephen Harper of Canada with their spouses, Dr. Maryna Poroshenko and Laureen Harper.
Defense Minister Jason Kenney visited Canadian Armed Forces personnel in Yavoriv, Ukraine, on June 27, and he announced more than $15 million in additional Canadian support to democracy and institution-building in Ukraine. “Canada is fully engaged in supporting Ukraine in its efforts to maintain sovereignty, security and stability in the face of the Putin regime’s unjustified aggression,” the minister stated.
Before that fourth trip to Ukraine – his fourth – Mr. Kenney told The Ukrainian Weekly, in an interview conducted by Christopher Guly, that “It’s fair to say that we’ve been the most forward-leaning Western democracy, diplomatically and politically” in terms of supporting Ukraine. He also noted that NATO should have an open-door policy, adding, “We would be very happy if Ukraine were to decide to pursue NATO membership.”
As previously announced on April 14 by Minister Kenney and Gen. Tom Lawson, chief of the Defense Staff, the Canadian government was providing additional military resources to help train and build the capacity of Ukrainian forces. Canada is deploying 200 Canadian Armed forces personnel to Ukraine until March 31, 2017. With the U.S., Canada is also providing individual and unit tactics training to Ukrainian National Guard personnel. A news release from the office of the prime minister underscored: “Canada’s position on Ukraine has been clear since the outset: we recognize the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and will never recognize the illegal Russian occupation of Crimea or any part of that country.”
On June 8, Sen. Raynell Andreychuk, a Ukrainian Canadian, was elected co-chair of the Ukraine-NATO Interparliamentary Council (UNIC) of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. Sen. Andreychuk said she was honored to be elected and stated: “Amid growing public support for Euro-Atlantic integration within Ukrainian society, and as Ukraine continues in its development as an independent and sovereign democracy, the Ukraine-NATO Interparliamentary Council provides a critical forum for building trust and understanding between Ukrainian parliamentarians and their counterparts throughout the Atlantic Alliance.” The UNIC was created by the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in 1998 to bring greater transparency to the implementation of the NATO-Ukraine Charter and to demonstrate parliamentary interest and involvement in cooperation between NATO and Ukraine.
At the end of the year, on December 17, Minister of International Trade Freeland, together with Minister of International Development and La Francophonie Marie-Claude Bibeau, announced funding to increase trade and investment between Canada and Ukraine that will help small and medium-sized enterprises in Ukraine access Canadian and global markets. Canada will contribute $13.6 million to the Canada-Ukraine Trade and Investment Support project between 2016 and 2021. Minister Freeland made the announcement following her meeting with Nataliya Mykolska, deputy minister of economic development and trade, trade representative of Ukraine, on the margins of the World Trade Organization’s 10th Ministerial Conference in Nairobi, Kenya. Minister Freeland commented: “Canada is committed to supporting Ukraine’s government and private sector to take advantage of new trade opportunities arising from implementation of the Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement. By bolstering the growth and competitiveness of Ukraine’s small and medium-sized businesses, we are building mutual prosperity for both our countries.”