SoVote

Mr. Arif Virani (Parkdale—High Park, Lib.)

Jan/31/22 2:15:31 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the situation on Ukraine's eastern border is simply unacceptable. Let us be clear. Russia, under Vladimir Putin, is the aggressor here. It is Russia that invaded Crimea and illegally annexed it in 2014. It is Russia that invaded the Donbass and has been waging war against Ukraine for the past eight years. It is Russia that is engaging in cyber warfare and has unilaterally amassed over 100,000 troops on Ukraine's border. This Russian troop buildup must stop. Canada will remain steadfast in its support of Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. This means protecting Ukraine's unfettered right to seek access to NATO, defend its own borders and build its economy. This is why two of our cabinet ministers have been to Kiev in the past 14 days. This is why we have delivered over $120 million in sovereign loans to Ukraine, and why we have not only renewed but also expanded Operation Unifier. Any further Russian invasion into Ukrainian territory will be met with economic sanctions. We will not waver in our defence of Ukraine. Slava Ukraini.

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Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

Mr. Arif Virani (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development, Lib.)

Jan/31/22 8:22:28 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, today on January 31 here in Ottawa, I want to reference something at the start of my comments. I agree fundamentally on the importance of protests and free expression in any democracy, but I also agree we must all denounce hatred and vilification. Things like the waving of swastikas and Confederate flags are jarring at all times, particularly on the fifth anniversary of the Quebec mosque shooting and days after International Holocaust Remembrance Day. Equally jarring is seeing people dance on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The National War Memorial is dedicated to those veterans who paid the ultimate sacrifice to give us the freedom to do things like protest. Those veterans deserve our respect because they died fighting authoritarianism. This brings me to authoritarianism right now, and what we are witnessing in eastern Europe and with Vladimir Putin. Let us make no mistake. The aggressor in this context is Russia. It is Russia who invaded and annexed Crimea illegally. It is Russia who invaded Donbass eight years ago. It is Russia who is now the aggressor amassing 100,000 troops on Ukraine's eastern and northern borders. Our support of Ukraine is steadfast. That is not a partisan issue, thankfully, in this chamber. It is based on our long and steadfast history. In recent years it has meant things like Operation Unifier and Operation Reassurance. It has meant sanctions under the Magnitsky legislation, and it has meant things like the Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement. In the last several weeks, literally in the last 14 days, that bond has ramped up. What have we done? What concrete actions have been taken? This has been put into some debate on the part of the official opposition. We have sent HMCS Montréal to the Mediterranean as part of Operation Reassurance. That left Halifax two weeks ago. We have had the Minister of Foreign Affairs in Kyiv. The minister of defence is in Kyiv as I speak. We have sent $50 million in humanitarian assistance, something the NDP has injected into this debate, rightfully, about assisting on the ground. That is being done with Canadian federal dollars. We have provided sovereign loans to the tune of $120 million, something emphasized by the Minister of Foreign Affairs. We have not just renewed Operation Unifier, but we have expanded Operation Unifier. We are providing military equipment. We are also addressing something that is brand new, which did not exist at the time the official opposition was in government, such as cyber-threats. We are addressing cyber-threats and using Canadian know-how to team up with Ukrainian know-how to better assist in that particular aspect of the fight. We have launched a renegotiation of the Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement, and I was happy to participate in that launch with the Minister of International Trade. Why does this matter? It matters because, as we have heard from my colleague from Etobicoke Centre, the security of Ukraine is the security of Europe, which is the security of the world and, ergo, Canada's security. It matters to Canadians. We have heard the member opposite for Calgary Shepard talking about his own Polish background. I represent, for example, Polish Canadians and Ukrainian Canadians. For any person in this country who is from eastern Europe, or who has ancestry from eastern Europe, they know what Russian aggression looked like under the Soviet Union and they are seeing it again now. It is causing them considerable anxiety, anxiety to which we must respond as a nation-state. What is at stake? It is the sovereign ability of any nation to determine, on its own, its security arrangements and to make independent decisions about how to protect its citizens. To those who say Canada is a small player and the actions it takes will be inconsequential, I say they are dead wrong. They are dead wrong because Canada can lead and has led. How have we led? When we deliver $120 million in sovereign loans, the EU then follows with additional money in sovereign loans, because they see Canada leading by example. We have heard Jens Stoltenberg, the secretary general of NATO, reference the leadership of Canada. That is what we need more of. That is why I called, together with the member for Etobicoke Centre and six of my colleagues, for this debate this evening. What I pledge in this chamber right now, on behalf of my constituents and on behalf of the Canadian people, is that we need to continue to do more. What more can be done? Two things can be done. We can address economic sanctions as a package, and we can address economic sanctions now. We need to demonstrate to a person like Putin that the cost of potentially going to war is far more expensive than the cost of peace. Lastly, we must address Ukraine's defence where it is needed. Where we can provide assistance in defending Ukraine, we must do so, including things such as providing electronic jamming equipment, which I understand the Ukrainian minister of defence has recently put in a request for. Those are the types of things I will advocate for in this chamber, I will advocate for with my government and I will advocate for on behalf of the Ukrainian Canadians whom I represent.

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Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

Mr. Arif Virani

Jan/31/22 8:28:23 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I take issue with a certain characterization he made that the Government of Canada has been delaying. The fact that I was able to list about five different actions we have taken in a 14-day span is the antithesis of delay. We have taken direct action. Most notably, the issue of providing assistance to defend Ukraine is a live one. It is one where all options are on the table. That is my first point. My second point is that we have to consider what Canada has been able to do thus far. Since Operation Unifier was launched, we have provided training to no less than 33,000 Ukrainian soldiers. That is an unbelievable number. It is a significant impact for a middle power in terms of providing security and assistance in the sovereignty and defence of Ukraine. I have been there myself to observe those troops during the celebration for independence on the Maidan in 2018. I have seen what Canadians are doing. I have seen what Ukrainian Canadian soldiers are doing on the ground. It is needed, it is wanted and it is respected. That is more of the type of contribution we need to see.

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Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

Mr. Arif Virani

Jan/31/22 8:30:26 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, that is a good question. To be honest, from a diplomatic point of view, western allies need a more unified approach. For one thing, we have not talked about the Nord Stream 2 pipeline during this evening's debate. Germany is reliant upon Nord Stream 2 as a source of energy. This is causing some division among western nations. We know the European Parliament, areas of Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia are against Nord Stream 2. If that kind of project goes ahead, it poses some instability within the western alliance. It is that kind of diplomacy we need to unify the western alliance so that we can approach projects like Nord Stream 2 in a unified manner and approach combatting Russian aggression in a unified manner.

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Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

Mr. Arif Virani

Jan/31/22 8:31:56 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, what I am hearing from constituents in my community is the anxiety, fear and concerns about action and wanting as much action as possible as quickly as possible. I am hearing from the Ukrainian Canadian Congress. The president of the congress lives in my riding. What I am also hearing is that, when people misconstrue what is actually being provided and misconstrue the situation among the Ukrainian armed forces, it does not help matters much. I am going to return to a comment raised earlier about the member for Winnipeg South and the very volatile comments she made, which unfortunately still exist on Twitter as I speak. Yes, an apology has been made by the leader of the NDP, but the fact that those tweets from the member for Winnipeg South remain on the record is not constructive to the conversation or to the support of Ukraine.

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