Canada’s economy is larger than Russia’s and combined with our G7 allies, we have the resources to stand up to Putin’s petulant transnational bullying.
As we approach the third year of Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, the stakes for the security of Canada and our allies has never been higher. Ukraine’s victory is not just a moral imperative: it will prevent Vladimir Putin from expanding his current conflict beyond Ukraine.
In recent weeks, high-ranking allied military officials have sounded alarms about a looming military confrontation with Russia.
“We hear threats from the Kremlin almost every day,” German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius warned earlier in January. “So we have to take into account that Vladimir Putin might even attack a NATO country one day,” possibly within five to eight years, he added.
Pistorius’s warnings have been echoed by many other NATO allies. Rob Bauer, Dutch admiral and NATO military committee chair, said in January that allies “must expect the unexpected” and “that’s why we are preparing for a conflict with Russia.” Norway’s defence chief, Erik Kristoffersen, warned recently that NATO has “two, maybe three” years to prepare for a potential assault by Putin’s armies.
For the rest of this column: https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/ukraine-s-victory-is-a-bulwark-for-canada-and-nato-against-future-russian-aggression/article_878b28f8-bfb2-11ee-bcc0-1f693a39dbda.html