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Harjit Sajjan

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Feds Announce $100M In Humanitarian Aid For Ukraine

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Canadian officials have announced $100 million for humanitarian assistance to aid Ukraine and a ban on Russian ships in Canadian ports and internal waters.

A pair of federal announcements on Tuesday are the latest actions to respond to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

At a briefing, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland did not mince words when addressing the matter.

“President [Vladimir] Putin has made a grave and historic error. This is not the behaviour of a superpower, this is the last gasp of a failing kleptocracy, and President Putin has now become an international pariah,” said Freeland, adding more sanctions will be announced in the days and weeks ahead.

International Development Minister Harjit Sajjan said the additional $100 million will support life-saving services such as shelter, water, sanitation, and food assistance. Ministers also announced 1600 fragmentation vests and nearly 400,000 individual meal packs to aid Ukraine.

Earlier in the day, Transport Minister Omar Alghabra announced Canada will ban Russian-owned or registered ships and fishing vessels in Canadian ports and internal waters. It’s expected this measure will come into effect later this week.

“Russia must be held accountable for its aggression in Ukraine. Canada will continue to do what is necessary to respond,” Alghabra said in a statement.

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Over 1000 Afghans Evacuated On Canadian Flights

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Canada’s efforts in Afghanistan continue to intensify as individuals attempt to flee the Taliban-controlled country.

12 Canadian flights have departed Afghanistan thus far, transporting over 1000 Afghan nationals to safety, said Harjit S. Sajjan, Minister of National Defence, during a press conference on Sunday.

Those evacuated were considered the most vulnerable due to their work with Canada and allied countries.

“Our goal is clear it is to evacuate as many Canadians and vulnerable Afghans as possible for as long as the security situation will allow,” said Marc Garneau, Minister of Foreign Affairs.

The ministers recognized that the deteriorating situation near the Kabul airport has raised security concerns.

Canada’s efforts to aid those in Afghanistan have been scrutinized, as many question the slow pace of evacuation. Earlier this month, the Government of Canada announced they would resettle 20,000 vulnerable Afghans threatened by the Taliban and forced to flee Afghanistan.

“I have instructed that processing be accelerated, resources be added and that all red tape be cut without compromising security,” said Marco Mendicino, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.

Mendicino outlined a new agreement that ensures those fleeing are evacuated expeditiously.

“We have reached an air bridge agreement that allows Canadian-bound Afghans to board allied air carriers and in turn, allied-bound Afghans to board Canadian planes,” said Mendicino.

“This means that Canada has the ability to leverage more evacuation capacity through the air bridge jointly established by the coalition.”