Bob Rae says Ukraine should get all the weapons Canada can get IG News
The words “hawk” and the name Bob Rae are rarely found in the same sentence – except when it comes to Ukraine.
Canada’s ambassador to the United Nations recently said that the federal government should give Ukraine every weapon it asks for.
Since the start of major hostilities last winter, Rai – former interim liberal leader and former NDP premier of Ontario – has been one of the leading Canadian critics of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s regime.
Online and in keynote speeches, he has taken every opportunity to invoke the Kremlin’s propaganda efforts that have been a hallmark of the nearly eight-month-old war.
In his speech at the UN General Assembly this week, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky clearly outlined his country’s military needs. CBC News has also reported that, in a letter to his Canadian counterpart three weeks ago, Ukraine’s defense minister had asked for more armored vehicles, more howitzers and ammunition and winter clothing.
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Canada’s ambassador to the United Nations, Bob Rae, joined the House to discuss the developments in the war in Ukraine and how the international community should respond.
“Saying this may be a career limiting move for me, but I don’t believe we can say anything less than yes,” Rae said on CBC radio on Saturday. House.
“Whoever, whoever, whoever is listening, that has been my constant advice. Obviously, governments have to decide at what speed they can do this.”
To meet Ukraine’s recent physical request, the Canadian military will almost certainly have to dip again into its existing inventory of equipment.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky asked the UN General Assembly to punish Russia by removing the Security Council veto and paying compensation for its war.
Rai said he was aware of Canada’s military commitments to NATO and elsewhere – commitments that require the military and other forces to maintain a high level of readiness.
“But I think we have to keep moving forward because the test of our success is not what we did last month,” he said. “The test of our success is whether we are meeting the needs that will allow Ukraine to achieve the objectives it has, and which we clearly share?”
It’s a point “we need to be clear about,” Rae said.
On Thursday, Defense Minister Anita Anand said Canada was in the process of sending 39 armored military carriers to Ukraine – part of an earlier commitment – and said it was in constant talks with its Ukrainian counterpart.
“We will continue the discussion next week,” she said. “It would be unwise for me to provide more information before finalizing the position.”
Ukraine also has a full stock of used vehicles, including hundreds of coyotes, bison and tracked armored vehicles (known as T-LAVs), in addition to new light armored vehicles and upgraded military carriers. Is.
Most, if not all, of them are in the process of being removed or terminated from service. Many of them witnessed fighting in Afghanistan.
Documents recently presented to parliament show the military recently compiled a list of vehicles to determine what can be donated to Ukraine.
Of the stock 149 coyotes used for reconnaissance, the Army selected 62 “which are considered to be in repairable condition but will require significant repairs and parts, which will take 220 days to procure.”
Defense experts have said spare parts are a big issue, as Canada and its allies do not want to give Ukraine broken or unusable equipment.
No other fleet of armored vehicles (Bison, TLAV, or M-113) can be considered surplus by the Canadian Armed Forces, said a written reply to a written question tabled this week in the House of Commons.
“These vehicles are required to support the operational capabilities of the Canadian Armed Forces, including spare parts and logistics management,” the written response said.
