Canada leaving ‘no stone unturned’ to defend Arctic alongside NATO: Anand
Global News
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand's meetings in Finland on Monday came the same day European leaders were at the White House discussing ways to end the war in Ukraine.
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said Monday the federal government is leaving “no stone unturned” to defend Canada’s North as changes in the global order in recent years are having direct implications for Canada’s Arctic sovereignty.
Anand was in Helsinki to meet with her counterparts from Nordic countries to discuss Arctic security, which she said has become a more critical issue since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Before that, Anand said NATO countries typically focused on shoring up the security along the eastern flank in Europe.
“NATO’s gaze also has to shift westward and north because of the changing geopolitical landscape, especially following February 24, 2022,” she said in a call back from Finland with reporters.
“We are seeing increased activity, for example, in the Northwest Passage, we are seeing Russian infrastructure moved further and further north on the other side of the Arctic Circle. So our priority, in terms of Canada’s Arctic foreign policy is to ensure that we leave no stone unturned, to protect and defend Canada’s sovereignty, especially in the Arctic.”
Anand’s meetings on Monday came the same day European leaders, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy were at the White House discussing with U.S. President Donald Trump ways to end the war in Ukraine. The conflict is more than a decade old, with Russia annexing Crimea in 2014, before launching a wider war in 2022.
Prime Minister Mark Carney last week participated virtually in talks with Zelenskyy and European leaders ahead of Trump’s summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Carney was not involved in Monday’s discussions at The White House and Anand did not say whether he had been invited, when asked Monday.
Anand said Canada’s position on the matter has not changed.
“Decisions regarding the future of Ukraine belong to Ukrainians alone,” Anand said. “That is Canada’s position and there’s no ambiguity on that front about this.”
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