LAKELAND – In the face of growing tensions along the Ukraine and Russian border, matched with fears of an imminent invasion and occupation of the rebel-held, otherwise referred to “breakaway republics,” Donetsk and Luhansk regions, the Government of Alberta clearly marked where its allegiance lies during a news conference Wednesday evening.
Less than four hours after the provincial meeting, the Russian military began an attack on Ukranian military bases, weapons’ depots and other key targets by land and air strikes just after 5 a.m. on Feb. 24, in Kyiv. This has been confirmed by both Russian and Ukrainian media.
The Wednesday meeting moderator – MLA Jackie Armstrong-Homeniuk of the Fort Saskatchewan-Vegreville riding and the Chair for the Advisory Council on Alberta-Ukraine Relations – was the first to speak at the podium marked with a sign that read “Standing with Ukraine.”
Falling within Armstrong-Homeniuk's riding and into surrounding Lakeland areas, are some of the highest concentrations of people who identify as having either full or partial Ukrainian origins.
In a 2006 Community Canada Census, about 41 per cent of Vegreville’s population identified as being partially or fully Ukrainian. Just 100 km north in the Town of St. Paul, 31 per cent identified as Ukrainian while 26 per cent of residents in the County of St. Paul also identified of having ethnic origins from the eastern European nation.
That same census identified that 332,180 Albertans identified as having Ukrainian origins.
“I'm... humbled to be the MLA for the largest Ukrainian population in Alberta, and a descendant of the first Ukrainian settlers in Canada,” said Armstrong-Homeniuk before turning the mic over to Oleksandr Danyleiko, the consul general of Ukraine, based in Edmonton.
Diving into the topic at hand, Danyleiko began by saying “Russian aggression started not with the latest violent actions of Mr. Putin – it started eight years ago with the occupation of Ukrainian Crimea and the initiation and incitement of the bloody conflict in eastern Ukraine.”
Referred to by many as the Russo-Ukrainian War, the United Nations (UN) is reporting between 13,100-13,300 civilians, pro-Russian and pro-Ukranian fighters and soldiers have died from April of 2014 to January of 2021.
The Ukrainian government states the death toll is even higher. Ukraine reports that more than 14,000 have died in the ongoing conflict with the majority of causalities occurring in the Donbas region of southern Ukraine.
“Russian aggression costs us a huge price,” said Danyleiko.
“We lost billions of dollars due to the occupations and economic decline caused by the Russian actions. We lost about seven per cent of our territory. But what the most painful thing is that we lost about 15,000 lives of Ukrainians. About 40,000 people were wounded. Our country will experience the consequences of this conflict for decades. This (is an) unbearable pain and unmeasurable humanitarian price for us.”
Danyleiko went on to say while this is a huge cost to the 42 million Ukrainian people, it is a calculated move by the Kremlin that will spare no expense to realize Russian President Vladimir Putin's imperial ambitions to renew a Russian Empire.
“If you think this is a strong wording, listen to his latest interview where (Putin) denies our very right to exist as a nation, as a state,” he explained.
Pointing to the Russian militarization along the Ukrainian-Russian Boarder, Danyleiko says the presence of roughly 150,000 Russian soldiers shows the situation continues to worsen and continues to threaten the sovereignty of the Ukraine.
“Unfortunately, Ukraine is in the security vacuum today. We are not a member of any defensive alliance. Russia ignores all the treaties they signed and all obligations they took. It's very sad and frightening that in the 21st century, one country can unjustifiably and unlawfully terrorize another one without fear of serious consequences.”
Mirroring requests made by Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba to other nations such as the US and Germany, Danyleiko outlined four actions he would like to see Canada take in order to support Ukraine against Russian encroachment – and now invasion as of Feb. 24.
“Firstly, strong and coordinated economic sanctions on Russia. Second, we urgently need modern weapons and military equipment – I want to underline defensive weapons,” he stated.
“Third, we need effective economic support." Danyleiko says that to recover from Russian interference, the country will need more than economic grants or credits. He is requesting that Canadians start to invest in long-term programs and projects to support the Ukrainian economy.
“Last but not least, humanitarian assistance is a crucial matter for Ukraine and Ukrainian people,” he continued.
Roughly 1.5 million people have been displaced since the beginning of the 2014 conflict and annexation of Crimea, according to the UN.
More recently, the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimates 2.9 million people in Ukraine will need humanitarian support in 2022 – this does not factor in the potential needs if further conflicts take place.
Premier speaks to Alberta’s role as a ‘democratic source of critical energy’
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney followed by saying, “There are many here in Alberta and in Canada, who think this is some distant conflict in which we have no interest and which we should ignore – that would be a terrible mistake, because aggression invites more aggression, and destabilization of the world order, is what Vladimir Putin has always benefited from.”
Touching on the contentious past between the two nations, Kenney spoke to the centuries long "Russification” and denial of the existence of unique Ukrainian language, culture, and its national independence.
“For seven decades of the last century (Ukrainians) lived under Soviet occupation – lived through one of the greatest crimes in all of human history – the Holodomor,” he continued.
“If the democratic world will not come together with strength to stop this Russian aggression, where and when does it end? We are standing on the precipice of what could become the single largest act of military aggression and armed conflict in Europe since 1945.”
Kenney then spoke to another issue closely related to Alberta politics – oil.
“Let me speak very bluntly to our friends and partners in the United States. President Biden a year ago arbitrarily and retroactively vetoed the Keystone XL pipeline that would have delivered over 800,000 barrels a day of responsibly produced oil to help fuel the American economy. Today, the United States imports over 800,000 barrels a day of oil from Vladimir Putin's Russia, enriching the Russian treasury to finance Putin's aggression,” he said. “This makes no sense as a matter of national security, or of energy security.”
The premier went on to say that Alberta can play a critical role in displacing Russian oil and energy exports on the world market, which he describes as “the basis of the wealth of Putin's state.”
Kenney hopes that other nations, including the US will look to Alberta to provide a secure and democratic source of critical energy.
“Canada has to step up in a bigger way,” he said. “So, I call on the Government of Canada to spare no effort in providing all necessary military equipment humanitarian support, and also the strongest possible sanctions.”
To demonstrate solidarity to the Ukraine, Kenney announced that the Alberta government will provide $1 million in funding to the Ukrainian Canadian Foundation to support humanitarian relief efforts.
Canada has the world's third-largest Ukrainian population behind Ukraine and Russia.
In 2016, there were an estimated 1,359,655 persons of full or partial Ukrainian origin residing in Canada, the majority being Canadian-born citizens, according to Statistics Canada.
