Section: National Newswatch (Canada)
Canada announces new sanctions for Russian entities, including biker gang
OTTAWA – The Conservative government has announced further economic sanctions against organizations in Russia — including a pro-Putin biker gang known as the Night Wolves.Prime Minister Stephen Harper says there must be ongoing consequences for Russia’s aggression in Crimea.The latest sanctions target four energy giants, including gas...
Improving medevac times a must to help Ukrainian soldiers survive, officials say
KYIV, Ukraine – Defence Minister Jason Kenney says the medical training component of Canada’s military assistance mission in Ukraine will make a real and substantive difference for the country’s battered army.Kenney says there will be a particular focus on improving casualty evacuation, which is vital in the survival rates of...
Information war high priority for both sides in Ukraine conflict
KYIV, Ukraine – The ghosts of the Cold War are everywhere these days in Ukraine, but sometimes they can appear anew as flesh and blood. Many in the West may have forgotten, but defectors were a key propaganda prize through the long standoff with the old Soviet Union.Ukrainian officials may be hard-pressed these days to compete with the...
Army begins rotation of troops in Poland; 90 soldiers leave Valcartier, Que.
VALCARTIER, Que. – About 90 soldiers from 5 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group in Valcartier, Que., have deployed to Poland as part of a NATO response to Russian actions in central and eastern Europe.Over the next month, approximately 200 soldiers will take over Operation Reassurance duties from the 4th Canadian Division’s 2 Canadian...
Ukrainians clamour for Canadian TV content and hardware as plug pulled on Russian shows
KYIV, Ukraine – “The Littlest Hobo,” “Anne of Green Gables,” maybe even “Flashpoint” could find a new lease on life in Ukraine as the country’s broadcasting council scrambles to fill TV screens with something other than Russian programming, says a senior Ukrainian official.To counter — both real and...
Final legal-diplomatic hurdles being cleared for Ukraine mission: Kenney
KYIV, Ukraine – Legal and diplomatic obstacles to deploying Canadian military trainers in Ukraine have largely been cleared away, Defence Minister Jason Kenney says.He was scheduled to tour the multi-national centre at Yavoriv, near the Polish border, on Saturday where the roughly 200 combat instructors will set up shop in the coming...
For retiring MP Irwin Cotler, human rights fights outlive political battles
OTTAWA – One month after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, as Canada’s ruling Liberal party introduced the country’s first anti-terror bill, a government backbencher rose to speak out against it.Liberal MP Irwin Cotler — already a lawyer, law professor, and an esteemed international human rights advocate before entering...
Ultra-nationalist regiment in Ukraine won’t get Canadian training, says Kenney
KYIV, Ukraine – Defence Minister Jason Kenney says the notorious ultra-nationalist Azov regiment will “absolutely” be excluded from the training Canadian military advisers are about to deliver in Ukraine.The paramilitary unit, which says it is the victim of a Russian smear campaign, called on Canada to refute claims that it is...
Judge expected to rule in fatal scaffolding collapse trial
TORONTO – A Toronto judge is expected to rule today in the case of a project manager who oversaw a construction crew involved in a deadly scaffolding collapse in 2009.Vadim Kazenelson faces four counts of criminal negligence causing death and one count of criminal negligence causing bodily harm. He has maintained his innocence.Court has...
Canada does not have right weapons to help Ukraine, defence minister reveals
Hinting at how close Canada has come to providing lethal aid to Ukraine in its war against Russian-backed separatists, Defence Minister Jason Kenney said Thursday that he recently ordered a military inventory to determine what weapons Canada could send to the Ukrainian army, if it chose to do so. The answer that came back was: not much....
