by Frances Martel
Far-left Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised the Ukrainian government $5 billion taken from seized Russian assets and several other forms of aid during a visit to Kyiv on Monday marking the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of that country.
The visit was preceded by a phone conversation between Trudeau and American President Donald Trump, who has prioritized brokering an end to the war with Russia directly. Notably, readouts and reports on the contents of that call published this weekend indicated that the topic of conversation was primarily Ukraine, rather than the Canada-U.S. relationship.
Under Trudeau, Canada has seen the eruption of multiple domestic crises – including housing shortages, increased drug crime, a healthcare system that has normalized killing patients, and an out-of-control immigration system – that Trump has identified as a threat to America, and responded with a looming threat of 25-percent tariffs on all Canadian goods. Trump has postponed the initial 25-percent tariff threat to give time for Canada – and Mexico, which is also facing the same potential tariffs – to address illegal immigration and fentanyl trafficking on their borders with America. Trump recalled in a speech on Saturday that he imposed a ten-percent tariff on Canada, however, and another 25-percent tariff on aluminum and steel imports, which disproportionately affect Canada.
Trudeau’s poor handling of the tariff threat last year resulted in the resignation of his longtime confidante, former Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, which precipitated his announcement that he himself would step down from the prime minister position. Freeland was among the first to announce a candidacy to lead Trudeau’s Liberal Party after he confirmed he would resign, positioning her to compete for the prime ministership.
As part of his resignation announcement, Trudeau also used a procedural move called “prorogation” to paralyze the Canadian Parliament, keeping it out of session through March 24 to allow his Liberals to elect a replacement. Without a parliament, Canada is significantly limited in the measures it can take to address Trump’s concerns and prevent the tariffs.
This political disaster, according to reports on his conversation with Trump, was a secondary concern to Ukraine in Trudeau’s conversation on Saturday.