SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 292 - Mar/20/24

Mrs. Marie-France Lalonde (Orléans, Lib.)

Mar/20/24 2:10:39 p.m.
Watch

Mr. Speaker, today, March 20, marks the International Day of La Francophonie. I would like to thank the francophone organizations and institutions across the country and in my community of Orléans for the outstanding work that they do in advancing and promoting the French language. I would also like to recognize two francophone leaders from Orléans, Nicole and Louis Patry, who received the 2024 Champlain Fondateur de la Francophonie award at the Gala de la francophonie plurielle. On March 1, I celebrated International Women's Day with 120 exceptional women from Orléans who joined me at my annual breakfast. At that time, I also had the honour of recognizing 38 women and girls by presenting them with the 2024 Orléans Leading Women and Girls Recognition Award. Congratulations to all for their community engagement, and happy International Day of La Francophonie.

153 words

Context: House Hansard - 292 - Mar/20/24

Mrs. Marie-France Lalonde (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence, Lib.)

Mar/20/24 8:37:51 p.m.
Watch

Madam Chair, let us set the stage as a beginning. When I think about Ukraine, I think our friends are in a fight for their very existence. Russia's illegal and unjustifiable invasion has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of Ukrainian civilians. To be clear, when we think about this attack, it is also an attack on all those who value peace, freedom and democracy. We, as Canadians, have a responsibility to help uphold those values. We must make sure Ukraine has what it needs to defend itself and to help chart a course for a brighter tomorrow, once this terrible war comes to an end. To guide these efforts, Prime Minister Trudeau and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy—

122 words

Context: House Hansard - 292 - Mar/20/24

Mrs. Marie-France Lalonde

Mar/20/24 8:39:09 p.m.
Watch

Madam Chair, I apologize. To guide these efforts, the Prime Minister of Canada and the President of Ukraine signed an agreement on security co-operation between our two countries in Kyiv this past February. I am very pleased with the agreement, and the reason we are talking about it tonight is that it builds on previous bilateral agreements between Canada and Ukraine, as well as on the larger NATO effort to help Ukraine. Specifically, it builds on the 2017 Canada-Ukraine Defence Cooperation Agreement signed by the Canadian Department of National Defence, the Canadian Armed Forces and the Ukrainian Ministry of Defence, a major milestone in our shared defence efforts. It also builds on the G7 joint declaration of support for Ukraine announced on the margins of the NATO summit in Vilnius last July. The aim of this new agreement is to expand and to deepen our political, foreign, military and security co-operation and effectiveness. This includes becoming strategic partners; enabling our two countries to share information more easily; delivering supports to Ukraine during both the conflict and the recovery; providing support to Ukraine in the event of future Russian attacks; helping Ukraine pursue integration into the Euro-Atlantic community; and supporting Ukraine in its pursuit of peace and security, with a special recognition that different segments of the population, including women, men, boys and girls, are all impacted differently by Russia’s invasion. As part of those efforts, the agreement contains several critical funding announcements for Ukraine. Those include $3 billion in critical financial and military support to Ukraine in 2024, which I think my colleagues mentioned earlier; $45 million for demining assistance and cyber resilience; another $30 million to support ongoing engagement between CSIS and the Ukrainian intelligence service; and other funding to support resilient food systems, mental health services and governance reforms, among other measures. One important aspect of this agreement is that it strengthens Canada and Ukraine's already robust defence relationship. We are proud to say that we are helping to support Ukrainian troops by training more than 40,000 Ukrainian soldiers. Since the war started, Canada has provided $4 billion in military aid to Ukraine, including $95 million in materiel. The agreement also recognizes the significant potential of the Ukrainian defence industry. When Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine just over two years ago, it launched an attack on all those who seek peace and freedom across the globe. Putin thought the west would be quick to abandon Ukraine, but he was wrong; we are more united than ever. The security co-operation agreement signed last month is a testament to Canada’s dedication.

445 words

Context: House Hansard - 292 - Mar/20/24

Mrs. Marie-France Lalonde

Mar/20/24 8:43:51 p.m.
Watch

Madam Chair, I thank my hon. colleague for his question. I like to believe that we share a common goal when it comes to support for Ukraine. From the very beginning, Canada has been there in support. We were also very much engaged in the Canada-Ukraine free trade agreement. We believe that this is a way to help support the rebuilding and to look at current components where we can help Ukraine in its desire to militarize itself. Unlike the member opposite, we voted in favour of this agreement. I would like to put on the record that I am extremely disappointed to see that the Conservatives, under the leadership of the leader of the Conservative Party, voted against the Canada-Ukraine free trade agreement. We will continue to be there. We have an excellent rapport with Ukraine. We have been answering its requests to provide support, and we will continue.

152 words

Context: House Hansard - 292 - Mar/20/24

Mrs. Marie-France Lalonde

Mar/20/24 8:46:27 p.m.
Watch

Madam Chair, I have a great deal of respect for my colleague, but I have to smile a bit because from day one, Canada has been firmly committed to providing help to Ukraine. I mentioned the training to help Ukrainian soldiers, the new co-operation agreement and the aid for rebuilding Ukraine. We recently announced $40 million to provide Ukraine with artillery ammunition during the 20th Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting. The Minister of National Defence is collaborating and conferring with our allies and partners to help Ukraine. I absolutely do not agree that we are not providing help to Ukraine. We will continue to do so. Yes, sometimes there are challenges, but from the very beginning, our intentions of supporting Ukraine have always been very sincere.

128 words