Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will join the world leaders in kyiv on Monday while Ukraine marks the third anniversary of the Russian large -scale invasion, said Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, as a Ukrainian diplomat urged Canada to “intensify” his support.
Zelenskyy confirmed during a press conference in kyiv on Sunday evening that he will meet Trudeau in person – one of the 13 foreign leaders who attend a summit on peace and security for Ukraine.
“Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be here with a visit tomorrow,” Zelenskyy said Ukrainian.
“He chairs the G7 at the moment, so he will tell me what’s going on with the relationship with the United States”
The press conference was translated into English by the Ukrainian broadcaster UATV.
The Prime Minister’s office did not publicly confirm Trudeau’s trip and did not answer questions about Zelenskyy’s remarks on Sunday.
It would be the fourth visit of Trudeau in Ukraine since the start of the war, and will almost certainly be his last as Prime Minister of Canada. He said he would resign after a new liberal chief was chosen on March 9.
Zelenskyy said that the president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and delegates from the Nordic countries and Balts also attend the summit of Monday in person, and that two dozen leaders will join virtually.
“This is an important opportunity to discuss Ukraine’s strategy and the security guarantee manager,” said Zelenskyy.
The allies of Ukraine seek to consolidate the support of the country torn apart by the war while the American president Donald Trump puts for an agreement to put an end to the war. Trump administration officials had talks with Russia without Ukraine at the table and report that a possible agreement could see Moscow keeping at least part of the territory that he has occupied since she initially invaded the Ukraine in 2014.
The United States also seemed to accept Russia’s position that Ukraine should never join NATO and pushes Ukraine to give access to its critical minerals as compensation for American military aid.
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Zelenskyy said that on Sunday that an agreement with the United States on minerals was progressing and that he would be ready to abandon the presidency if it would make lasting peace for his country under NATO security.
“If to realize peace, you really need me to abandon my message, I’m ready,” he said.
Answering the question of a journalist to find out if he would exchange his office for peace, Zelenskyy said: “I can exchange him for NATO.”
Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin both called for elections in Ukraine, which were suspended under the martial law imposed by Zelenskyy when Russia invaded in 2022. Trump called Zelenskyy as “dictator”; Zelenskyy accused Trump of living in a “disinformation space”, angry with American officials.
Oleh Nikolenko, Consul General of Ukraine in Toronto, told Global News that rhetoric from the United States is “counterproductive” and will only serve “an invitation (for Russia) to commit more assault”.
Ukrainian officials said Russia launched 267 strike drones in Ukraine overnight on Saturday, more than any other attack on the war. Moscow continued to pull ballistic missiles on Ukraine, including at least three Sundays, while its officials stand with Washington.
Nikolenko said Ukrainian negotiators were pressure on the United States security guarantees as part of any economic or mineral agreement.
Trump and his advisers are calling on Europe to take the initiative to strengthen Ukraine’s security, which European leaders said they were ready to do and Ukrainians say they are welcoming.
Canada must also be one of these security conversations, Nikolenko said.
“We think that at that time, it is very big for Canada to play a leadership role,” he said. “Canada can really fill several shortcomings at the moment: military, humanitarian support, demining, training of our forces.
“We really hope that Canada will be able to intensify its support at the moment, because we are in a critical period, I would say.”
Trudeau asked that Ukraine be brought to the negotiating table quickly, which he expressed during a call with Zelenskyy last week.
On Wednesday, Trudeau practically participated in a meeting with European leaders summoned by French President Emmanuel Macron to find a response to Trump’s openings in Russia.
Trudeau spoke on Saturday with Trump by phone, and the two countries said that Ukraine was one of the discussion subjects.
Ottawa is a major donor from Ukraine, with the Kiel Institute for the Global Economy Canada’s ranking as fifth in the global allowances of its Ukrainian support tracker, which covers military, financial and humanitarian contributions.
Canada ranks third for the amount of financial allowances in Ukraine, in particular in levy loans intended to maintain the country’s solvent and provide funding quickly after its allocating.
But Canada takes 20th place for military allowances weighted by the population, and analysts criticized Ottawa for delays in the supply of equipment sought by Ukraine.
Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly said last week that Canada wanted to be “involved in the protection of Ukraine” at the end of the war, although Ittawa said what it might train. His office would not answer if it meant that Canadian troops on the ground in Ukraine.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who will go to Washington this week with Macron, said his government was ready to deploy troops in Ukraine to help maintain a ceasefire if we took place.
The two leaders spoke by telephone on Sunday before their trip to the United States and said that the United Kingdom and Europe had to “show united leadership in support of Ukraine in the face of Russian assault,” said the Starmer office.
Nikolenko said that the Ukrainians in Canada feel exhaustion and “anger” when the war continues and the geopolitical landscape is changing, but would not say if this anger is directed to the United States
“Their anger is with war-that war continues, that Russia shoot drones and missiles in Ukrainian cities, that Ukrainian civilians continue to die,” he said. “They are angry because they want this war to end in a fair way.
“I want to emphasize that there should be just peace, and that’s what Ukrainians want.”
– with Canadian press files
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