Canada will be opening new ways for Ukrainians to seek refuge in this country and is sending additional lethal aid for Ukraine to use in the ongoing Russian-launched war. The government is also taking major trade action against Russia and is calling for the country to be suspended from international criminal policing organization Interpol.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters on Thursday that in his latest conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky he told him that “Canada would continue to be there for them.”
The latest example of this, he said, is Canada joining other nations in calling for Russia to be suspended from Interpol.
“We’re supporting this because we believe that international law enforcement co-operation depends on a collective commitment to the universal declaration of human rights and mutual respect between Interpol members.”
As a result of Russian President Vladmir Putin’s unjustified attack on Ukraine, an estimated one million people have fled Ukraine. In response, Canada is opening up two new immigration streams.
One will allow an unlimited number of Ukrainians to come to this country on a temporary basis with expedited emergency visas, and the other is a new family reunification pathway for those looking to stay permanently in Canada.
For those looking to come to Canada while the attack continues, this stream will allow Ukrainians to stay for up to two years. Most visa requirements will be waived, including fees and language assessments, and in order to qualify individuals will need to complete a “simple” application form and provide biometrics for security and background screening.
Everyone who arrives under this new stream will also be eligible for a work permit or study permit that will allow them to take a job with any Canadian employer or enroll in an education program, said Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Sean Fraser on Thursday, encouraging businesses to “step up” and hire those who arrive.
He said that over the last week he’s heard from numerous people and community groups, including his mother, who have offered to welcome Ukrainians.
Fraser said his main motivation in using a processing system with the “greatest horsepower and the fewest administrative requirements,” comparable to the program that handles two million temporary visa applications a year, was to expedite the processing of the hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians who have fled to neighbouring countries, prompting a refugee crisis.
However, it will take approximately two weeks before the application process opens. He noted the existing temporary residence visa application form is open and requests are being processed on a priority basis, with 6,131 Ukrainians already arriving in Canada since Jan. 19.
“Canada is ready to welcome Ukrainians fleeing Vladimir Putin’s war, and there is no limit to the number of applications that we are going to be willing to accept,” Fraser said.
For those looking to make Canada their home, the government is also introducing an expedited path to permanent residency for Ukrainians seeking to reunite with family members who are already in Canada, through a new family sponsorship program with the details to be finalized in collaboration with Ukrainian-Canadian community groups in the coming weeks.
“The reason for our commitment goes beyond the historic ties between Canada and Ukraine… I can’t help but think that centuries from now historians will be writing of the courage on display in Ukraine today,” Fraser said. “From the fearless leadership of President Zelensky, to the young fathers with tears in their eyes delivering their children to safety before they return to the frontlines… to the unarmed grandmothers confronting Russian soldiers.”
CANADA SLAPS HEFTY TARIFF ON RUSSIAN TRADE
Canada is also revoking Russia and Belarus’ “most-favoured nation status” as trading partners, meaning they will be subjected to a 35 per cent tariff on their exports to Canada.
Canada is the first country to take this step, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said Thursday, adding that the only other nation that Canada subjects to this high tariff and deprives of other associated benefits is North Korea.
“We are working closely with our partners and allies to encourage them to take the same step,” Freeland said.
Referencing the latest round of sanctions levied on 10 Russian executives, Freeland said that the total number of people and entities sanctioned by Canada since Russia’s occupation of Crimea in 2014, has now risen to more than 1,000.
“The G7 has already imposed the strongest sanctions ever inflicted on a major economy, on Russia, and more will follow in the days to come. The ruble has been down by as much as 30 per cent this week… The Russian stock market is closed today for the fourth consecutive day,” said the finance minister. “The economic costs of the Kremlin’s barbaric war are already high, and they will continue to rise.”
Freeland told reporters that she feels there has been a “tipping point” in the international community and there’s widespread agreement that allied countries will only keep ratcheting up the pressure. She said the sanctions—particularly on Putin’s “sycophants” and “enablers” who have “enjoyed a pretty fabulous lifestyle in the West,”—are working.
“We are using tools which no one would even have imagined deploying just a week ago, and there’s more to come,” Freeland said.
CANADA SENDING ROCKET LAUNCHERS, GRENADES
Defence Minister Anita Anand also announced Thursday that adding to their cadre of lethal aid shipments to Ukraine, the Canadian Armed Forces will be sending from their stockpile up to 4,500 rocket launchers, and up to 7,500 hand grenades.
“These weapons… will be transported to the region as quickly and safely as possible,” Anand said.
Canada is also sending Ukraine $1 million to go towards the purchase of high-resolution modern satellite imagery, providing Ukraine’s military to better monitor the movement of Russian forces.
“As we see the horrific impacts of Putin’s aggression, we must continue to remember that our allies and partners are united, and that we are going to keep adding to the measures to support Ukraine’s sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity,” Anand said. “Only Putin knows what Putin will do, and it is our job to do everything we can to protect as many lives as possible together with our NATO allies.”
Asked about Canadians who may be looking to go to Ukraine to join their foreign legion, Anand said that the government is not facilitating this, but the Canadian Armed Forces is currently recruiting and would welcome applications. Anand noted the military has trained over 33,000 Ukrainian soldiers since 2015, with 3,400 troops currently on high-readiness alert in Europe should NATO’s posture evolve.
Meanwhile in the House of Commons on Thursday morning, MPs unanimously agreed to a motion from NDP MP Charlie Angus calling on the City of Ottawa to consider renaming the portion of Charlotte Street, which houses the Russian embassy, in honor of Zelensky. The city has already installed new blue and yellow “Free Ukraine” street sign blades in front of embassy.
Demands for government intervention in Air Canada labour talks could negatively affect airline competition in Canada, the CEO of travel company Transat AT Inc. said.
“The extension of such an extraordinary intervention to Air Canada would be an undeniable competitive advantage to the detriment of other Canadian airlines,” Annick Guérard told analysts on an earnings conference call on Thursday.
“The time and urgency is now. It is time to restore healthy competition in Canada,” she added.
Air Canada has asked the federal government to be ready to intervene and request arbitration as early as this weekend to avoid disruptions.
Comments on the potential Air Canada pilot strike or lock out came as Transat reported third-quarter financial results.
Guérard recalled Transat’s labour negotiations with its flight attendants earlier this year, which the company said it handled without asking for government intervention.
The airline’s 2,100 flight attendants voted 99 per cent in favour of a strike mandate and twice rejected tentative deals before approving a new collective agreement in late February.
As the collective agreement for Air Transat pilots ends in June next year, Guérard anticipates similar pressure to increase overall wages as seen in Air Canada’s negotiations, but reckons it will come out “as a win, win, win deal.”
“The pilots are preparing on their side, we are preparing on our side and we’re confident that we’re going to come up with a reasonable deal,” she told analysts when asked about the upcoming negotiations.
The parent company of Air Transat reported it lost $39.9 million or $1.03 per diluted share in its quarter ended July 31. The result compared with a profit of $57.3 million or $1.49 per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue totalled $736.2 million, down from $746.3 million in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Transat says it lost $1.10 per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of $1.10 per share a year earlier.
It attributed reduced revenues to lower airline unit revenues, competition, industry-wide overcapacity and economic uncertainty.
Air Transat is also among the airlines facing challenges related to the recall of Pratt & Whitney turbofan jet engines for inspection and repair.
The recall has so far grounded six aircraft, Guérard said on the call.
“We have agreed to financial compensation for grounded aircraft during the 2023-2024 period,” she said. “Alongside this financial compensation, Pratt & Whitney will provide us with two additional spare engines, which we intend to monetize through a sell and lease back transaction.”
Looking ahead, the CEO said she expects consumer demand to remain somewhat uncertain amid high interest rates.
“We are currently seeing ongoing pricing pressure extending into the winter season,” she added. Air Transat is not planning on adding additional aircraft next year but anticipates stability.
“(2025) for us will be much more stable than 2024 in terms of fleet movements and operation, and this will definitely have a positive effect on cost and customer satisfaction as well,” the CEO told analysts.
“We are more and more moving away from all the disruption that we had to go through early in 2024,” she added.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
