Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, who often talks about her Ukrainian roots, delivered a message to Canadians who share her background.
“To my own Canadian-Ukrainian community, let me say this — now is the time for us to be strong as we support our friends and family in Ukraine,” she said, before switching to Ukrainian and then to Russian.
“To my friends in Russia, I want to say directly and clearly — our fight is not with the Russian people but with President Putin and those who surround and support him, those who made a bloody choice to attack a sovereign democratic state.”
The sanctions will target 62 individuals and entities. Trudeau said they will be applied to members of the Russian elite and their families as well as to the Wagner Group and major Russian banks, including two supported by the state.
Canada also announced a plan to sanction members of the Russian Security Council, including the defense minister, finance minister and justice minister.
Effective immediately, Canada is canceling all export permits for Russia and new applications will be rejected.
Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly said no aerospace, technology or mineral goods will be sent to Russia. She said hundreds of permits, with a combined value of more than C$700 million, are being scrapped.
“We call on Russia to stop its attack immediately,” Joly said. “This madness has to stop.”
Trudeau said he spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy shortly before the press conference on Parliament Hill. He said he told Zelenskyy about the measures and promised Canada would stand with Ukraine.
Zelenskyy tweeted about the conversation and urged Canada to take solid, swift action.
“Today there is a full-scale war throughout [Ukraine]!” Zelenskyy wrote. “We demand the immediate imposition of additional tough sanctions against Russia. Now, more than ever, we need concrete support! I count on leadership of [Canada] in this process!”
Canada’s move followed a meeting of G-7 leaders to coordinate the response.
Trudeau was asked Thursday for his thoughts on a ban on imports of Russian oil and gas.
The prime minister said the subject has been part of the conversation among Canada’s allies, but he noted that Russia is a significant source of oil and natural gas for European partners.
In recent weeks, he said allies have been trying to ensure the world has alternatives to Russia, but also “to make sure that Putin no longer draws sustenance for his economy from selling those products around the world.”
When pressed why Canada decided not to target Putin directly, Trudeau said sanctions against Russia must be introduced in a coordinated way with allies.
Joly said more sanctions are coming. “We want to make sure to put maximum pressure on Vladimir Putin’s regime and also on the Russian economy,” she said.
Trudeau also announced that his government will prioritize immigration applications for Ukrainians who want to come to Canada. He said the government has arranged for safe passage for Canadian citizens, permanent residents and their families at Ukraine’s land borders with Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Moldova.
On Thursday, Canada temporarily suspended its operations at its embassy and consulate in Ukraine. Canadian personnel are now safely in Poland, the government said.
The new sanctions are in addition to measures Canada announced earlier this week.
Trudeau announced sanctions Tuesday against members of the Russian State Duma who voted to recognize the independence of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in eastern Ukraine. He also imposed measures that prohibit Canadians from engaging in certain transactions and activities in those territories, prevent dealings in Russian sovereign debt and sanctioned two major Russian financial institutions.
Trudeau also announced that Canada will send up to 460 additional personnel to Europe, adding to the 800 already deployed to support NATO. The Canadian military is also sending a battery of M777 artillery guns to Latvia, a second frigate to the region and is retasking a CP-140 Aurora long-range patrol aircraft in the area.
The government said around 3,400 Canadian Armed Forces personnel are authorized to deploy to the NATO Response Force should they be required.
Canada has also provided C$7.8 million in lethal weapons to assist Ukraine. Defense Minister Anita Anand said the country has made two deliveries of those weapons, which include rifles, machine guns, surveillance equipment and 1.5 million rounds of ammunition.
Earlier this month, Canada announced it had temporarily moved its military trainers out of Ukraine to elsewhere in Europe. Anand said the Canadian personnel have trained 33,000 Ukrainian soldiers.
Anand said Thursday that when it comes to further military aid for Ukraine that Canada is “examining all options.”
“It would be imprudent to describe those options at the current time, but as soon as we have more to tell, we will do so,” she said.