Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau has been banned from entering Russia, according to a press release on the Russian Foreign Ministry’s website.
The announcement came shortly after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed Canada’s House of Commons, during which he repeated his call for a NATO-led no-fly zone over Ukraine.
A total of 313 Canadians have been barred from the country, as Canada continues to slap sanctions on Russian officials and entities.
The list includes almost every single sitting member of Parliament — save for a handful, such as Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, who has already been banned from Russia — including the leaders of every major party.
A few other Canadians have found themselves barred from Russia too, including prominent Ukrainian-Canadians and Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Wayne Eyre
Reacting to the news that Trudeau had been banned from Russia, the prime minister’s office (PMO) said they won’t be deterred from punishing Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
“The only response from Russia that we’re interested in is an immediate end to this illegal, unnecessary war in Ukraine,” a spokesperson for his office said.
“Until then, Canada and our allies will continue imposing crippling sanctions on Putin and his enablers in Russia and Belarus. The people of Ukraine, and President Zelenskyy, continue to have our unwavering support.”
The spokesperson then reiterated a line from Trudeau’s speech in the House of Commons hours earlier.
“President Zelenskyy is a champion of democracy. Democracies around the world are lucky to have him as our champion.”
As MPs emerged from the House of Commons, many learned of the ban from the reporters waiting outside, including Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly.
“I’m not surprised and I won’t back down,” she said.
Upon hearing he had also been banned from entering Russia, Bloc Quebecois Leader Yves-Francois Blanchet quipped that he wasn’t planning to visit the country anyways.
Canada announced a fresh round of sanctions against Russian officials Tuesday morning, mere hours before Russia’s apparent retaliation. The latest round targeted 15 people, most of them Russian military defence officials.
Zelenskyy, meanwhile, warned MPs this morning that Russia’s invasion of his country is an attempt to “annihilate” the Ukrainian people and enacting a no-fly zone is vital to support the resistance effort.
“You all need to do more to stop Russia, to protect Ukraine, and by doing that, to protect Europe from Russian threat,” Zelenskyy said, speaking in Ukrainian.
“They’re destroying everything. Memorial complexes. Schools. Housing complexes. They already killed 97 Ukrainian children.”
Trudeau and NATO leaders have ruled out a no-fly zone in Ukraine, despite Zelenskyy’s repeated pleas. Enforcing a no-fly zone would require a willingness to shoot Russian jets out of the sky — a red line that Trudeau and NATO leaders have warned could escalate into open conflict with nuclear-armed Russia.
But to hear Zelenskyy tell it, the Russians have already crossed many lines in their attacks on Ukrainians.
“It’s their attempt to annihilate Ukrainian people, and there is nothing else to it. This is their main objective,” Zelenskyy said.
“I hope you can understand. I hope you can increase your efforts,” Global News reports.
