Russia faces severe sanctions if it moves further into Ukraine, says Canada’s Joly
Published January 20, 2022 at 7:16 am
OTTAWA — Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says Canada will join allies in imposing severe sanctions on Russian officials if the country takes further military action to compromise Ukrainian sovereignty.
Russia has positioned about 100,000 troops across Ukraine’s borders along with tanks and other heavy artillery, stoking fears across Europe of an invasion, but Russia has denied it intends to do that.
Joly says Russia is already in Ukraine and that Canada and its European and NATO allies will not stand for further provocations – a reference to Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea and its fomenting of Russian separatist forces in Ukraine’s eastern region.
On Wednesday, U.S. President Joe Biden said he expects Russian President Vladimir Putin to invade Ukraine but that he will pay a “dear price” for that.
Joly was speaking in Brussels today with her European Union counterpart Josep Borrell, where she is wrapping her three-country tour that has included stops in Ukraine and France.
Joly is to meet later today with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 20, 2022.
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