Trudeau instructs Canadian foreign minister to defend Ukraine

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau released updated mandate letters for his 37-member cabinet on Friday, December 13.

In a mandate letter to Minister of Foreign Affairs François-Philippe Champagne, he said: “You will work with the Minister of National Defence to ensure that any deployment of the Canadian Armed Forces aligns with Canada’s national interest, our multilateral commitments and the Government’s policy objectives, such as our existing commitments in the Middle East, Latvia and Ukraine.”

“Increase Canadian support abroad for democracy, human rights, international law and freedom of the press. In this regard, you will build on the Magnitsky sanctions regime to ensure increased support for victims of human rights violations by developing a framework to transfer seized assets from those who commit grave human rights abuses to their victims, with appropriate judicial oversight,” the prime minister stressed.

Photo credit: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

ish