Moscow wonders if Ottawa has enough forces to protect its own borders
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has claimed that his country is considering all possible options and is not ruling out sending troops, after British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced a new “coalition of the willing” to secure Kiev’s positions should a peace deal with Moscow be reached.
Starmer hosted an emergency meeting in London on Sunday, during which he acknowledged that while some nations have little to contribute, those willing should act with urgency. Asked whether Canada would consider deploying its troops, Trudeau said that any scenario was possible.
“Canada has looked at the ways it can best help, and as I said a few days ago, everything’s on the table,” Trudeau said, insisting that his country “has been one of the strongest countries in support of Ukraine from the beginning.”
As an example of Canada’s leadership in supporting Kiev, Trudeau highlighted a joint effort with the UK and Poland under which they have “provided military training to over 44,000 Ukrainian troops” since 2015 – an average of roughly 4,400 per year. He also cited “almost $20 billion” ($13.8 billion USD) in “multifaceted assistance” to Kiev. However, Germany’s Kiel Institute estimates Ottawa’s total contribution at around $8.6 billion, making it the fifth-largest individual state donor after the US, Germany, the UK, and Japan.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova responded with amusement to Trudeau’s remarks, questioning whether Canada even has enough troops to protect its own borders – apparently referencing US President Donald Trump’s running joke about absorbing Canada as the 51st state.
“And who will protect Canadian soil in the event of a northward expansion of the United States? Apparently, Ukrainians who fled to Canada from mobilization,” Zakharova quipped.
Starmer reiterated on Sunday that “not every nation will feel able to contribute, but that can’t mean that we sit back,” emphasizing that the UK is “prepared to back this with boots on the ground and planes in the air, together with others.”
French President Emmanuel Macron stated that European troops would only be deployed once the situation on the ground is deemed safe for them. He proposed a temporary month-long “truce in the air, on the seas, and on energy infrastructure” – an idea that Moscow has previously denounced as a Western ploy to rearm and bolster Kiev.
Moscow has strongly opposed the deployment of unauthorized foreign troops to Ukraine, warning that without a UN mandate, they would be considered legitimate targets. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said that the idea of deploying foreign troops to Ukraine – pushed primarily by France and Britain – is meant to “further fuel the conflict and stop any attempts to cool it down.”
