In peaceful Banff Rockies, Canada vows to help rebuild war-battered Ukraine

National Post

21-05-2025

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Facing reporters on a grassy terrace overlooking Mt. Rundle, the two ministers were pelted by recurring, chilly bouts of rain and sleet.
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'Welcome to summer in Canada,' Champagne said to Marchenko.
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In Ukraine, fighting continues along a 1,000-kilometre front which has budged little in recent weeks, though Russian forces remain on the attack.
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Maintaining a small foothold in Russian territory in the Kursk region are Ukrainian forces, who also continue to defend against relentless air assaults on their cities.
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Canada has provided about $20 billion in military, humanitarian and financial assistance to Ukraine since the February 2022 full-scale Russian invasion, while mostly Western countries have furnished about $380 billion in aid as of March 2025.
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But on Tuesday, Champagne said it was too early to say if Canada would increase assistance to Ukraine before his government tables a budget in the fall.
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Fears of escalation with a nuclear-armed Russia have constrained Ukraine's allies from providing some heavy and sophisticated armaments, while some of those countries, particularly the U.S., have placed limits on how longer-range weaponry can be used.
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Around 300,000 Ukrainians who have fled the fighting have arrived in Canada during that time, with more than 962,000 in total being approved for emergency settlement.
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This week, the European Union and the U.K. announced they're expanding sanctions on Russia, targeting individuals, Moscow's so-called shadow fleet of oil tankers enabling them to end-run sanctions, as well as on third countries supplying the Kremlin with war material.
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Those new measures follow numerous rounds of sanctions imposed on Russia since February 2022 that have impacted the country's economy but not halted its military offensive.
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U.S. President Donald Trump has said he will not impose new sanctions on Russia, calling them counterproductive.
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Earlier this month, European countries that have already significantly lessened their dependence on Russian natural gas said they will completely ban those imports within two years.
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G7 summiters are to discuss further sanctions on Russia, imposing a lower price cap on Russian oil to pressure Moscow's economy and action against its shadow fleet.
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On Tuesday, Marchenko said progress at the G7 towards tougher sanctions on Russia, along with a lower oil price cap, would be welcome.
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And he was asked if ministers at the G7 should pressure U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to reimpose sanctions on Russia.
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'During these meetings, we'll find a chance to reiterate our position for stronger sanctions on Russia because it's the only possible way to make necessary agreements (with Russia),' he said.
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'It's a good time to make the Russian economy suffer.'
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