44th Parl. 1st Sess.
February 28, 2022 11:00AM
- Feb/28/22 2:17:17 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, unbelievably our worst nightmare has been realized with war again in Europe. Vladimir Putin's illegal and unjustified full-scale war against our beloved Ukraine has shocked the free world. No matter the cost, no matter what roadblocks Russia tries to put up, there can be no excuses. Canada and the west must do whatever it takes to support Ukraine. Nothing should be off the table.
The cost of not supporting Ukraine in this fight is too great. It means that dictators, despots and thugs around the world can redraw the lines on the map by force and get away with it. This is a pivotal moment in the modern history of the world. What Canada does now matters.
Let us be clear. The illusion of the peace dividend from the end of the cold war has been shattered. The barbarian Vladimir Putin must be held accountable for the atrocity he is committing in Ukraine now. The bravery of the people of Ukraine has inspired us. The skilled Ukrainian military and the courage of the citizens who are taking up arms against Russian tyranny is nothing short of breathtaking.
Canada stands shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine.
Slava Ukraini.
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- Feb/28/22 2:22:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we look forward to a decision from the government on that very quickly.
Many are saying what we have been saying for a long time and that is that Canada and the world need to end their dependency on Russian oil and gas. Canada imports almost $1 million worth of Russian oil every day. The Prime Minister has spent the last six years waging a war on Canadian oil and gas. That needs to end. It is bad for Canada, and it is bad for the world. It only helps Russia.
When will the Prime Minister stop our dependency on Russian oil and instead work to get Canadian oil and gas to the world?
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- Feb/28/22 2:23:34 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, today Canada, together with our allies, took unprecedented action against a world-leading economy. We have hamstrung Russia's central bank, thus depriving Putin of access to his war chest. We have shown that sanctions do work and fortress Russia is exposed.
We agree that oil and gas do fund Putin's war machine, and we are working on that too.
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- Feb/28/22 2:27:24 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I think Quebeckers and Ukrainians share an enormous affinity and really understand one another.
I want to thank my colleagues for their remarks. Together with our allies, we imposed unprecedented sanctions on the Russian economy today. Fortress Russia is exposed. It is a myth.
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- Feb/28/22 2:37:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Vladimir Putin just put Russia's nuclear forces on alert. He is a dangerous man, and we must not forget that Russia is our neighbour to the north west. As the crow flies, Russia is not far from Canada.
The Prime Minister has been caught off guard because he neglected to modernize the north warning system and is still refusing to buy F-35s. Canada's sovereignty in the north is in jeopardy.
Is the Minister of Defence aware of this? What is she doing?
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- Feb/28/22 2:39:52 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we wish to reiterate our steadfast support for the Ukrainians who are fighting to defend their country, their cities and towns, their homes and, most of all, the people they love.
Today, Canada and its allies must send a historic and unequivocal message to Russia, to Vladimir Putin and to all current and future leaders. Anyone who starts a war must pay a very heavy price. Aggressors must be isolated.
Will the minister work with her partners to exclude Russia from the G20, among other things?
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- Feb/28/22 2:40:33 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canada and our allies have responded to Russia's invasion of Ukraine with tough, coordinated economic sanctions.
Our goal is to exert maximum pressure on Putin's regime in response to his blatant defiance of international law. The help we announced yesterday is one important contribution, and we will be sending more.
All options are on the table, and we will respond firmly to the escalating crisis caused by Russia.
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- Feb/28/22 2:43:28 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Canada sends half a billion dollars per year to Russia to import its oil. The government has clearly chosen against building Canadian pipelines. The result was a decision by the Liberal government to instead fund the oppressive regime in Russia. The government boasts about giving $120 million to Ukraine and then sends half a billion dollars per year to Russia to fund Putin's war machine.
Does the government now realize that its choice to kill Canadian energy projects has funded Russia's invasion of Ukraine?
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Madam Speaker, believe me, I share the member's concerns about Russia Today and Sputnik. I will be very candid with her in saying that we have an issue and have raised it with the CRTC. It is ultimately the independent regulator, but I am very confident and pleased by the fact that Bell, Rogers and Telus have all committed to removing Russia Today from access in Canada.
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Madam Speaker, everybody knows the propaganda system that comes out of Russia. That was not part of my speech. I do not disagree that it is full of propaganda.
My point is that every time the Liberal government brings a bill forward, every single time, it borders on a Communist-type policy. It borders on it every single time. The Liberals are trying to take away what we can see online, what we can read online, where we can shop and who can advertise to sell us something online. It is clear that the government does not want the people of Canada to think for themselves about their own content.
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- Feb/28/22 6:37:19 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, over the past number of weeks, we have been working closely with our allies in Europe who indeed are dependent to a large degree on imports of energy from Russia and are right now in a difficult position. That is why we are so touched by the steadfastness and the strength of the European response in putting severe sanctions on Russia, even though there is uncertainty in terms of their energy security. I have assured them that Canada and countries around the world will be there to support them as they move forward.
Canada is a producer and exporter of energy. We have banned, as of today, any imports, which were already negligible, from Russia of crude oil. We will continue to work with the world to make sure that we can stand strongly against Russia and support people in democracies everywhere.
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- Feb/28/22 7:03:22 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Portage—Lisgar for her comments and for her description of the situation. However, the only way for parties to resolve a conflict is through dialogue.
I would like to know why my colleague is so insistent that the ambassador or his representatives be sent back to Russia when that will ultimately only disrupt the dialogue.
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- Feb/28/22 7:21:44 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, the leader of the Bloc Québécois.
As my leader mentioned, we see a serious problem. Many countries, including Canada, use natural gas from Russia. This is a big problem for the world, and it is obvious that countries that purchase natural gas from Mr. Putin are undermining Ukraine.
I would like to hear the Bloc leader's thoughts on using only Canadian natural gas, instead of natural gas and oil from other countries.
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- Feb/28/22 7:28:17 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would hope that it will be just a matter of hours before the government adopts an approach similar to that of the rest of the world. A growing number of governments across Europe are imposing on Belarus sanctions comparable to those imposed on Russia. That one dictator is serving as an accomplice to another dictator does not make the first dictator less guilty than the second.
The people of Belarus are being oppressed and have been egregiously dominated by evil means. Strategically speaking, it is clear that amassing troops on the border between Ukraine and Belarus was the quickest way to reach Kyiv, which, today, as far as we know and from what we are hearing, whether it is true or somewhat true, is fighting a fierce, courageous and very human battle for its dignity. With that in mind, in order to slow down, curb, contain, stop and perhaps get everyone out of Ukraine who has no business being there, I do believe that Belarus should be subject to the same sanctions.
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- Feb/28/22 7:48:04 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is true that we have already seen the impacts of the campaign of disinformation led by Russia to particularly target democracies. They do so by propagating messages, information and propaganda that are incorrect. They repeat the lines that Russia is encouraging people to believe. It is information designed to subvert democracies and incite hatred against different groups. In this case, it is against Ukraine.
We have seen clear, concerted attempts to incite hatred against Ukraine that are baseless, and we have seen propaganda that is baseless.
There is a couple of things that we could do. The first is to be very careful. When we see information, we should be very careful about the source and make sure it is a source that we trust, a source that has been verified before spreading any of its messages. There is a clear effort, and we will be targeted with disinformation.
The second is that government has a strong role to play. We have seen, through a number of different accounts, including whistle-blowers, that social media benefits from divisive rhetoric and comments, and they amplify messages that might divide people because, whether it is people criticizing that message or supporting it, it will keep more people on their platform.
Governments have to play a role in ensuring that disinformation is not spread and is not allowed to be spread. It cannot be left in the hands of social media companies, which would give those messages that are divisive and that create controversy more space and amplify them in people's feeds. That is why government has to take a role in stopping the spread of that information. It is something we have long called for.
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- Feb/28/22 8:06:45 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, indeed hindsight is 20-20. I think most of us a month ago, two months ago, six months ago, would not have predicted that Putin would actually have gone into Ukraine.
As to the situation right now and whether we should cut off Russian supplies of oil and gas to Canada, I personally support that idea. However, the devil is always in the details. What is an alternative right now? We certainly do not want people to be unable to heat their houses or to see businesses closing down in Quebec because they do not have access to heat or oil. I think our government has already said and made clear that all options are on the table. This is certainly something we have to consider.
Certainly we need to go on an economic blitzkrieg against Russia. We have to go on multiple fronts against Russia just like Russia went against Ukraine. We ought to harm Russia economically however we can, whether it means imports, exports or financial connections, absolutely everything. We go after Russia.
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- Feb/28/22 8:07:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, my colleague from Thunder Bay—Rainy River said something interesting. He said that the only brother who kills his brother is a madman. Well, a distant cousin who watches the brother kill his brother might also be described as a madman.
What does my colleague think about the possibility of imposing equally severe sanctions on Belarus as are being imposed on Russia?
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- Feb/28/22 8:08:18 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the truth is that I personally had not considered what we are going to do with Belarus when I was in question period today. In fact, I admit that when the Bloc brought up Belarus, it caught me off guard, but I absolutely agree with the member.
I cannot speak for the government, but I agree that countries have to choose sides. It is the same with China: Choose a side. Either be on the side of globalization and the right side or be on the wrong side. Belarus chose. It chose to be on Russia's side. Let it suffer the same consequences as Russia.
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- Feb/28/22 8:10:01 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, absolutely, the Russian people are not our enemy. The enemy is Putin. There are very many good Russian people. There are many people in Russia who are suffering, seeing their kids going off to fight a war that they themselves do not want. Certainly they are on our side. They are not on Putin's side.
As for war crimes, I would take a step back further and even suggest this. What really galls me is the fact that Russia continues to sit on the Security Council and is the president of the proceedings dealing with what is happening in Ukraine. When they are part of the decision-making body in the UN, I think we have to fundamentally start looking at some of the underpinnings of the UN, including Russia, which is clearly not in favour of globalization and the world order, and its position in the international legal order.
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- Feb/28/22 8:32:49 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Kings—Hants.
My time is short, so I will make some quick points.
Over the last week, the world around us has changed and we need to adapt. We need to change with it. Last week, people across the world were treated to two horrifying events that occurred at exactly the same time. The first is what we have been talking about tonight: Russian missiles dropping on innocent civilians in the Ukraine, an illegal act of aggression committed by Vladimir Putin and his regime against a sovereign, independent neighbour.
The second happened on our very continent in New York, where the Russian ambassador was chairing a meeting of the UN Security Council. The meeting was to discuss a resolution condemning Russian aggression against Ukraine, and after denying that Russia ever intended to invade Ukraine, the ambassador was confronted during the meeting with news that missiles were dropping on Ukraine from Russian territory. The Russian ambassador was then allowed to continue to chair the meeting, to which his country was the named party, and then when his country was the only one to vote against the resolution, he was able to veto it.
My first point is that the United Nations badly needs reform. Whether it is the Security Council or the Human Rights Council, where dictatorships that abuse human rights sit in judgment of democracies, we need to reform this organization.
My second point is that we need to hold Vladimir Putin, those around him in his regime, his military commanders and those who support this aggression to account. That means we need to find a way to ensure that we let Vladimir Putin know that he will be brought before an international tribunal. The problem is that this international tribunal would be the International Criminal Court, and Russia has not acceded to the Rome Statute. Therefore, in my understanding, this would require a referral from the Security Council, where Russia would hold a veto. Coming back to my first point, we need to reform that organization.
We all have been so incredibly proud to watch the resolve of the Ukrainian people. My heart goes out to all those suffering there and to the Ukrainian Canadian community. I am also part of a diaspora, and I think one needs to be part of a diaspora to fully understand the pain when one's ancestral homeland is attacked, no matter how many generations prior our ancestors were there. My heart goes out to those Canadians. My heart also goes out to the Ukrainians who are standing up not only for their democracy and freedom, but for ours and the democracy of the world. Canadians can be inspired and learn from Ukrainians.
My third point is that nobody in Ukraine today is asking who they voted for in the last election or whether they believe in vaccine mandates. People are pulling together against a real threat to their country. We can use this example as a stark reminder that there are a lot of threats to Canada and the world and we need to pull together and stop being divisive. We as members of Parliament can set the example that we can disagree with people without disliking or hating them. We all believe in a strong, united Canada. We are all here to defend our country, and we need to pull together.
For the last number of years, we have had warning signs of real threats to the world order: the rise of authoritarian strongman regimes, Russia's annexation of Crimea, repression by China in Hong Kong and its threatening actions in the South China Sea, the rise of Donald Trump and the rise of isolationism in the most powerful democracy in the world. The attack on Ukraine is a culmination of this and we need to rise to the challenge.
My next point is that in this battle, Ukraine is our friend and ally and Putin is not. There are not two sides to this. We need to fully support Ukraine. We need to do everything we can to make sure that the economy of Russia is absolutely destroyed so that Putin's act of aggression ends and he is replaced. I have been very proud of how Canada has led in this regard.
My last point is that we need to seriously look at increasing defence spending. I understand that military spending is not popular, but we are now faced with a world order that is changing and with new challenges posed by cybersecurity and disinformation. Russia is our neighbour in the Arctic, and we need to seriously consider whether we are prepared to confront this new world.
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