Photo: Adrian Wyld The Canadian Press Canadian Defense Minister Bill Blair stated that “we will continue to provide the military assistance Ukraine needs, but as a member of NATO, Canada does not intend to deploy combat troops in Ukraine.
Florence Morin-Martel
4:32 p.m.
- Canada
Even though French President Emmanuel Macron said Monday that sending Western troops to Ukraine could not “be ruled out,” Canadian Defense Minister Bill Blair dismissed the idea Tuesday.
“We will continue to provide the military assistance Ukraine needs, but as a member of NATO, Canada does not intend to deploy combat troops to Ukraine », Said Mr. Blair, in a written statement sent by his office.
At the end of an international conference in support of Kiev held on Monday, the French head of state recognized that there was “no consensus today to officially send , assumed and endorsed by ground troops”. “But in dynamics, nothing should be excluded. We will do whatever it takes to ensure that Russia cannot win this war,” he added, saying “assume” a “strategic ambiguity.”
Just like Canada, the United States has brushed aside the possibility mentioned by Emmanuel Macron. “US President Joe Biden has been clear that he will not send troops to fight in Ukraine,” National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said. The “path to victory” will involve military aid currently blocked by Congress, she added.
kyiv's European allies, such as Germany and Italy, also rejected Mr. Macron's comments. An official from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) also rejected this possibility.
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For his part, the adviser to the Ukrainian presidency Mykhaïlo Podoliak was, however, delighted with the exit of Emmanuel Macron. “It’s a good sign,” he told Agence France-Presse. “The French president’s statement clearly takes the discussion to another level,” he raised, admitting that this option was at this stage “only a proposal for discussion.”
For his part, the spokesperson for the Russian presidency, Dmitry Peskov, warned kyiv's allies. It is “absolutely not in their interest” to send soldiers to Ukraine, he stressed. According to him, simply raising this possibility constitutes “a very important new element” in the conflict.
Without crossing the “belligerence threshold”
In the scenario where troops were sent to Ukraine, they would not be intended to directly fight the Russians, the head of French diplomacy, Stéphane Séjourné, clarified on Tuesday.
This hypothetical shipment would rather be linked to actions identified as priorities for Europeans, such as cyberdefense, arms co-production in Ukraine or mine clearance. “Some of these actions could require a presence on Ukrainian territory, without crossing the threshold of belligerence,” argued Mr. Séjourné, the day after Mr. Macron’s statement.
It is difficult to identify the deep motivations which pushed the head of state to make these remarks on Monday, believes Justin Massie, professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Quebec in Montreal. “If it was intentional and it wasn’t a mistake, he did it to send a message. »
“By taking such a stance, he goes further than before in asserting that Russia cannot win. This is perhaps to say that France will not accept a Ukrainian defeat and that there are many options that remain on the table,” he continues.
If Emmanuel Macron wishes to further assert his leadership in this area, “the boots must walk the talk”, according to Justin Massie. “The French military commitment of 3 billion euros this year, which is staggering compared to previous aid, must materialize concretely on the ground for the president's voice to carry. »
Canada’s “unwavering” commitment
On Monday, Bill Blair took part in the international conference in support of kyiv organized in France. He reiterated “Canada’s unwavering commitment to Ukraine,” his office said. The latter recalled that Ottawa will provide “essential financial and military aid” to this country this year.
On Saturday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau traveled to Ukrainian soil to participate in a ceremony to mark the second anniversary of the start of the Russian invasion, February 24, 2022 .
After his visit to Hostemel airport, where one of the fiercest battles of the war took place, he signed a bilateral security agreement with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky .
The deal includes some $320 million in new military spending, expected by the end of the year, as well as $2.4 billion in loans to Ukraine, to be administered by the International Monetary Fund.< /p>
The military aid promised by Ottawa is “minimal”, maintains Justin Massie. “Justin Trudeau may say that he will always stand by kyiv, but in the end what matters is what we give. And on this level, Canada is not there,” he believes.
With Agence France-Presse