SoVote

Jun/1/22 8:08:54 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I think that democracies need to work more closely together not just on diplomacy or the military, but also on economic issues. An example of that is precisely in Sweden and Finland. Finland is a global leader in telecommunications technologies. The Scandinavian countries have long produced telecommunications giants, such as Nokia and others, that could help us develop 5G and 6G technologies that would help us build a secure national communications infrastructure to ensure that we were no longer threatened by authoritarian states, such as China, that have their own 5G systems through companies like Huawei, which the government has recently banned. I note that Sweden has a robust domestic defence industry. It produces the Gripen fighter jet. There are many other economic strengths that Canada could take advantage of by working more closely with those two countries.

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Context: House Hansard - 79 - Jun/1/22

Ms. Kristina Michaud (Avignon—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia, BQ)

Jun/1/22 8:24:46 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, for Sweden and Finland to join NATO there must be consensus among the current 30 members, and their membership must be ratified. I think that Canada has been quite proactive so far. As soon as Sweden and Finland raised their hands, the Minister of Foreign Affairs said that she wanted quick support for this decision. A motion was tabled in the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security. Everyone here also seems to be acting in good faith and in agreement. I do not know about the other member countries. What is the status of the process? We are talking about Canada's leadership role. What should that role be? We know that Turkey has expressed its opposition to Sweden and Finland joining NATO. I think Canada has a role to play in this. The member mentioned this in his speech, but I would like to know how this diplomacy should take shape. Should we get together with the European countries to discuss this? Do we have any idea what positions other member countries are taking at this time? Is the same process taking place within their democratic institutions? What is Canada's role in facilitating this process and what should that role look like?

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Context: House Hansard - 79 - Jun/1/22

Mr. Pierre Paul-Hus

Jun/1/22 8:26:10 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my excellent colleague for her good and long question. As I mentioned in my speech, from what I and my other NATO colleagues can tell, at present, there is virtually unanimous support for the principle of admitting Finland and Sweden. The only exception is Turkey, for the reasons that I mentioned. What is Canada's role? Given the war in Ukraine and the supply of gas, which could become problematic for those cutting ties with Russia, I noticed that several European countries have their own problems. Countries are nervous about the issue of supply. For example, Hungary told the European Union yesterday that it did not agree with imposing new sanctions because it wants to protect itself. I believe that Europe is currently under stress. As Canada is somewhat removed, it has a diplomatic role to play. It is up to our government to intervene with the best possible diplomacy, which I hope it can do, by talking with Turkey and finding ways to calm the waters and ensure the consensus of NATO countries.

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Context: House Hansard - 79 - Jun/1/22

Mr. Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe

Jun/1/22 8:56:08 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I have a great deal of respect for my colleague, and I sincerely thank him for his question. I am sad that he is not a member of my party, but perhaps that will happen one day. It is an important question. What should the government do for Ukraine? We must be realistic. Canada is not a military power. What can we do to get things moving, play a role and influence what is currently going on in Ukraine? First, we must help the refugees. Canada is a welcoming country, so we must make every effort to help them. At present, 200,000 Ukrainian refugees have applied for authorization to come to Canada. To date, about 100,000 applications have been approved, but the people are not arriving. Ukrainian mothers and their children have been authorized to come here. Unfortunately, these women have been living on their meagre savings for the past three months. They cannot afford the airfare. It is one thing to authorize people to come, but now they must get here one way or another. That is one thing we could do. In addition, through diplomacy, Canada should obviously gather as many allies as possible to ensure that Sweden and Finland join the NATO alliance.

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Context: House Hansard - 79 - Jun/1/22

Hon. John McKay

Jun/1/22 9:44:43 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is always the youth who pay the price for wars. Most of the generals are older and the people who are getting killed are frequently younger people. Boy, that was blindingly obvious in the prison in Vilnius, but also in the member's experience as well. On peace, order and good government, I do not know where we are on that. It is a worthwhile initiative. One cannot separate diplomacy, aid and military abilities. It needs to be a team Canada approach in all matters. I would like to think we are making some progress on that, but I do not always know that we are.

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