Tag Archives: Ukraine

QP: The elephant in the Speaker’s Chair

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While the prime minister was in town, he was meeting with BC premier David Eby while QP was going on. It shouldn’t have been going on. The Speaker, Anthony Rota, should have resigned when the House opened at 11 AM, which should have triggered a new election for Speaker and suspend proceedings for the day. That didn’t happen. Pierre Poilievre started off in French, and gravely intoned about the news on Friday that the House of Commons gave a standing ovation to a former Nazi, and that this embarrassed Canada and handed propaganda to Russia, but insisted that only the prime minister was responsible and demanded he do so publicly. Karina Gould stood up to say that she was extremely disappointed with the situation and as a descendent of a Holocaust survivor, she was extremely disappointed, but Poilievre knows that the decision was the Speaker’s alone and that neither the government nor the Ukrainian delegation knew about it ahead of time. Poilievre switched to English and insisted that the question was for the prime minister—who was not in the room, but he wanted to play the game of pretending Trudeau is simply not answering—and demanded an apology to the PM for “vetting” the individual but letting him in anyway (which is not what happened). Gould stated that she found out only when the was introduced by the Speaker, and made a call not to politicise the issue. Poilievre insisted that because Trudeau is in Ottawa today, he needed to stand up and take responsibility for this, and apologise for it. Gould again said that she was personally very hurt by this and that this as not the government’s issue, and to not politicise it. Poilievre repeated his same demand for an apology for this diplomatic inside the, and got another plea not to policies this. Poilievre insisted that Canadians were tired of a government who blames everyone else for their failures, and wondered if the Speaker was being thrown under the bus this time. Gould insisted that everyone was caught off-guard.

Alain Therrien led for the Bloc, and noted that the Russians are using this event for propaganda, and asked what the government would do to repair the damage from Friday’s incident. Gould repeated her line that this was very painful and asks everyone to work responsibly. Therrien repeated the demand to know what the government would do, and Gould repeated her same lines.

Jenny Kwan rose for the NDP, and she started with saying Friday’s incident never should have occurred, before worrying about housing and demanded  an acquisition fund to stop the loss of low-cost rentals to profiteering landlords. Sean Fraser says that the government needs to make investments in low-cost financing to build homes and to invest in affordable housing. Kwan insisted the government was not meeting the need. Fraser said that increasing the supply of market housing was not enough on its own, it still needs to happen as part of the solution.

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Roundup: Rota’s apology for his fatal mistake

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The warm glow of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s address to Parliament has given way to a bitter aftertaste as it turns out that the Ukrainian veteran that Speaker Anthony Rota introduced in his concluding remarks turned out not to have been either a Ukrainian-Canadian fighter or a Ukrainian partisan (as Rota’s introduction could fuzzily be construed as) but rather, was a volunteer for a Nazi-controlled unit, and it has turned into an absolute shitstorm of groups, particularly Jewish groups, being rightfully outraged, and partisan actors trying to use this to score points.

Rota released a statement of absolute, unequivocal apology, and I suspect that he will make a statement in the House of Commons first thing today, but it nevertheless casts a pall over him and his judgment, particularly because he has brought Parliament as a whole, and the government, into disrepute, and has quite possibly created an international incident over this where it feeds the interests of Russian propagandists who deride Zelenskyy and Ukraine as a whole as being some kind of Nazi stronghold. And I wish that I could say that this was atypical, but Rota has spent his time as Speaker largely being asleep at the wheel, and being a genial idiot who is more concerned with being everyone’s friend than he is in doing his job, which is tremendously unfortunately. And his trying to be everyone’s friend and being asleep at the wheel has brought us to this point here, and I have a hard time seeing how he has any choice in the matter here other than to announce his resignation on Monday morning, because his job is to protect Parliament, and he has done the opposite. There should be no walking back from this, no matter how well-intentioned he was, or how inadvertent the mistake.

Of course, the politics at play here have already spun all the way out of control, with Pierre Poilievre claiming that Trudeau met with said individual, while everyone else says that he hasn’t. People are insisting that Trudeau and the PMO should have known that this individual was invited, which I can’t see as possibly being the case if the Speaker, who is independent and does not run everything past PMO or PCO, had his own allotment of guest seats that he filled. I think that this will nevertheless obligate Trudeau to issue some kind of public apology, possibly in the Chamber, either before or after QP (assuming we have one if the Speaker resigns and they don’t have to suspend until a new permanent Speaker is chosen), and to offer a public assurance to Zelenskyy that he was unaware and that this situation is dealt with by Rota’s resignation. Unfortunately, this is going to play into so many propagandists’ narratives, and everyone is damaged by this.

Ukraine Dispatch:

Russian airstrikes killed two and wounded eight in the southern city of Kherson on Sunday, and early this morning, they launched a drone and missile attack against Odessa. New Western weapons are exacting a significant toll on Russian forces in the fighting near Bakhmut. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy offered two Polish volunteers awards on his return to Ukraine, as the two countries are in a major dispute over grain shipments. Here’s a look at an airport in Poland which serves not only as an arrival point for Ukrainians badly injured and in need of care, both civilian and military, as well as a transfer point for military equipment.

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Roundup: Zelenskyy’s trip to Canada

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It was Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s big day in Ottawa, his first since the war began, and he began the day paying a visit to Governor General Mary May Simon. She taught him the Inuktitut word “Ajuinnata,” meaning perseverance in the face of adversity, and it’s a message Zelenskyy took with him. (Simon also taught that word to the Queen when she was first appointed, and has been something of a calling card that she leaves with those she interacts with).

From there, Zelenskyy arrived on Parliament Hill and did the official greetings within the West Block before having an extended bilateral meeting that included signing new economic agreements and pledges of another round of economic and military support from Canada. And from there, to the House of Commons to address a joint session of Parliament, giving an excellent speech (that was far better than the one Joe Biden delivered a few months ago).

From there, Zelenskyy was off to Toronto to meet more business groups and supporters in Canada. The CBC has photos from the day here, and here is a summary of what was agreed to between the leaders.

Ukraine Dispatch:

While the cat’s away… Ukrainian forces launched a missile strike against Russian forces in occupied Crimea, and destroyed the headquarters of Russia’s navy in the region. On the eastern front, Ukrainian troops are vowing to fully re-take Bakhmut, but know that it’s going to be a challenge.

https://twitter.com/ukraine_world/status/1705219158013522222

https://twitter.com/rustem_umerov/status/1705273496157192520

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Zelenskyy’s Second Speech to Parliament

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The usual Friday schedule had been abrogated, and the Chamber fitted for a podium in front of the Speaker’s Dias, and the usual Hansard desks in the centre aisle taken out for VIP seating—most of those VIPs being the handful of senators who opted to stay the extra day and not fly home on Thursday night (owing in part to quirks in the Senate’s travel rules)—but some of Zelenskyy’s party, including his new defence minister. There were a surprising number of seat-fillers on the Conservative side of the aisle—staffers, spouses, a child or two—while there were some into Liberal benches, but not nearly as many.

When things got underway in earnest, well behind schedule, the deputy Speaker gave a five-minute warning as he has made a habit of doing over the previous speeches. When Speaker Rota took his place, he noted that this was Zelenskyy’s second address to this Chamber, and that they are celebrating friendship and solidarity.

https://twitter.com/aballinga/status/1705273581016346978

Justin Trudeau took to the lectern first, and he spoke about the attacks on the international rules-based order, and why it was important to host Zelenskyy. He noted the start of the invasion, and the inspiring courage of the Ukrainian people in fighting for their freedoms. He noted that he had had a change to speak to Ukraine’s parliament, and was happy to see the Canadian flag in that Chamber. He mentioned some of the things they spoke about—nuclear hostage-taking at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, and the ecocide of the burst dam. Trudeau spoke about seeing the bombed-out neighbourhoods in Kyiv, and the haunted look in the eyes of the people there. He noted the funding for support for mental health care in Ukraine, and of the First Lady’s championing that cause. He noted the blocked grain exports causing suffering in other countries, and that Zelenskyy is holding the rules-based order in the balance. He called Putin’s action a “break with civilisation,” to weaken democracy and assert autocracy, but that Ukraine has held against his imperial ambitions. He noted the populists who give rise to demagoguery and the rise of disinformation, but that rules will protect us, but we need to stand up for them and live by them. 

“History will judge how we defend democratic values, and Ukraine is at the tip of that spear,” Trudeau said.

After noting some of the Ukrainians who fled the war in the Chamber with us, and that some were scientists leading the way on the clean economy, and others were Ukrainian-Canadians leading the charge to help those from their original homeland. He announced a new longer-term agreement on stable and predictable aid for Ukraine, with more armoured vehicles built in London, Ontario, and for more trainers for Ukrainians. He spoke about the need for a real and durable peace and not just a false one that would allow Putin to re-arm, and so that Ukraine can determine their own future. This meant following Ukraine’s peace formula, which is what they just fight for. He gave another paean for the fight to defend democracy, and praised Zelenskyy for staring down Putin every day.

Zelenskyy took to the lectern, and once the applause died down, he spoke about how Edmonton hosted the first monument to the victims of the Holodmor in the world in 1983. At the time, Ukraine didn’t have their own monuments because they were still under Soviet control, and that a lot has changed since then, that Ukraine is restoring their own historic identity. What has not changed in that time, was that Moscow is bent on controlling Ukraine, including the use of genocide. He stated that this was not an ordinary conflict, but saving millions of lives, and that the destruction on their cities or villages must not go unpunished. 

“This Russian aggression must end with our victory,” Zelenskyy declared. “Moscow must lose once and for all.”

Zelenskyy noted that justice is not an empty word in Canada, and that we don’t make political cause with hatred and enmity and that we are always on the right side of history. He praised Canada’s leadership, and stated that false neutrality is immoral. He thanked Canada’s support, not only just with military support but also with de-mining, the encouragement around sanctions, and training soldiers. He called Ukraine and Canada partners and friends, and noted our help with getting them off of their dependence Russian nuclear power technology, which Russia uses as a means of control. He noted Canada’s leadership in seizing Russian assets to help them rebuild, before taking about the importance of justice, particularly as a warning to other would-be aggressors. He thanked Canada for making those Ukrainians in our country feel at home, which is not just a legacy of history, but a legacy of character. After a few more parting words about freedom, and standing up to evil, he spoke about future monuments to their victory in this war, their common victory and the legacy of good. He mentioned his meeting with Mary May Simon.

 

“She taught me a word in her mother tongue—Ajuinnata,” Zelenskyy said in conclusion. “The meaning is don’t give up. Stay strong against all odds. Ajuinnata, Canada. Ajuinnata, Ukraine.”

Senate Speaker Raymonde Gagne took to the podium, her first address as Speaker, and in French, she spoke about the honour of hosting them, and stated that Canadians have heard them. Switching to English, she spoke about the importance of role models, and that young people see the example that Zelenskyy sets to the world. She praised his iconic video of proclaiming himself here in Kyiv when the invasion began, and that he has remained steadfast in the time since, which was inspiration for the world. Her message for him to take back to Ukraine was that the Canadian people stand with Ukraine and aren’t going anywhere.

Speaker Rota closed out the event with a few remarks of his own, noting that Zelenskyy has joined a small group of those who have addressed Canada’s parliament a second time, and one of the only others to do so was Nelson Mandela. He quoted Mandela’s praise for Canadians, before raising Sir Winston Churchill’s address to Parliament during World War II. He noted the presence of a 98-year-old Ukrainian WWII veteran, who later fought to help Ukraine’s independence, who is also from his own riding. Rota noted that Ukraine’s parliament has not stopped sitting through the war, and that he has developed a friendship with its chairman, and that he has also conveyed what is at stake—not only Ukraine’s freedom, but the future of the rules-based order, which is necessary for the world to move forward. He vowed that Canada will continue to stand with Ukraine, before one last round of applause.

Overall, it was nice to see Zelenskyy in the House of Commons in person rather than by video, and something else that was different this time was that Zelenskyy spoke in English the entire time—the video address was almost entirely in Ukrainian and translated. It was also a better speech from Trudeau than when Joe Biden was here earlier in the year, while Zelenskyy’s speech was also better than Biden’s. For Trudeau, he was far less focused on applause lines and while he did point out a couple of people in the galleries, it was less obvious and gimmicky than when Biden was here, as though he were aping a State of the Union Address. Zelenskyy also wasn’t focused on those constant applause lines like Biden was, which made for better flow and frankly better impact overall.

Roundup: The credible intelligence gets a lot weightier

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At the UN General Assembly, prime minister Justin Trudeau reiterated what he said about credible intelligence pointing to Indian agents responsible for the murder of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil, and said that he is calling on India to help with the investigation. But what we have since learned is that the credible intelligence includes both human sources and signals intelligence from Five Eyes allies that includes Indian diplomats’ communications, and that is certainly lending a lot more heft to these allegations—on top of the fact that the director of CSIS and the National Security Advisory made trips to India to deal with government sources there, and sources are saying that behind closed doors, the Indian government isn’t denying the existence of this intelligence. That’s a pretty big deal, particularly as members of the Pundit Class in this country are trying to insinuate that this is really about Trudeau ginning up controversy to create a distraction (which doesn’t follow this government’s pattern at all).

https://twitter.com/StephanieCarvin/status/1705084748823961930

In the meantime, India has stopped processing travel visas from Canada under the transparently ludicrous excuse that their facilities face security threats, which affects a lot of people here hoping to visit family. Trudeau didn’t say if he would respond in kind, but it seems unlikely if he is serious about saying he’s not trying to provoke or escalate this with India, but to actually get to the bottom of this. (The fact that India doesn’t want to cooperate in public does appear to be something of a tell).

Zelenskyy Visit

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy landed in Ottawa last night. He will be visiting Governor General Mary May Simon this morning, followed by a visit to Parliament Hill, where he will be greeted my parliamentarians in advance of an address to Parliament that will take place around 1 PM Eastern.

https://twitter.com/journo_dale/status/1705081288808403189

Ukraine Dispatch:

While president Volodymyr Zelenskyy was in Washington, Russian forces pounded more Ukrainian cities, with more deaths being reported in the southern city of Kherson. There has been more shelling of Kherson early this morning. Here is a look at the Ukrainian soldiers fighting their way back to reclaiming Bakhmut.

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Roundup: The failed “1 Million March”

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The supposed “1 Million March 4 Children” took place yesterday in cities across Canada, and in most instances, were drowned out by counter-protesters—a welcome sign to be sure. And to be clear, these protests have nothing to do with children, or “parental rights,” but is focused largely on the moral panic around trans rights (and the falsehood that they are mutilating and sterilising children), pronoun policies in schools, and the libel that this is somehow about gays “grooming” children, or indoctrinating them to be gay. The attendees are pretty much a toxic brew of leftover “Freedom Convoy” enthusiasts, grievance tourists, far-right nationals, and some Muslim parents whom they have temporary found common cause with (and don’t expect this to last, given that much of the far-right agitation in Canada has its roots in Islamophobia, but they’re happy to let the Muslims agitate against LGBTQ+ people on their behalf). A few arrests were made at some of the demonstrations, but they were largely peaceful in that regard. (Write-up of the Ottawa event here, with photos here).

In terms of political reaction, the marchers didn’t get much support, outside of New Brunswick premier Blaine Higgs who greeted them and made common cause with them, because of course he did. In Ottawa, Jagmeet Singh led a counter-protest march, while the Conservatives were instructed to steer clear and say nothing, not even when it was raised in Question Period, as they sat stone-faced when others clapped about the denunciation of anti-trans hate. This silence is of course deliberate—it’s not because of a lack of conviction, but because they don’t want to jeopardise any ability to try and eat into the PPC’s far-right voter base, because that’s how they think they’ll edge out the Liberals in the next election. And I really have to question how MPs like Melissa Lantsman and Eric Duncan can sit there through this as though this doesn’t affect them (because remember, there is not “good parts only” version of right-wing populism. You can’t try and dog-whistle about “gender theory” and think that it’ll stop there, because it won’t).

The thing that gets me through all of this so-called movement to “protect children” is this insistence that LGBTQ+ people must be “grooming” children or indoctrinating them because there’s this belief that they’re too young to know if they’re gay or lesbian, or even trans. In most cases, that’s not true—most kids know who they are, and most of us older LGBTQ+ people have been through miserable and unsupportive youth and adolescence, and want to ensure that the next generation doesn’t have to go through what we did. That these people are masking their homophobia and transphobia as concern is one thing, but it’s the complete lack of empathy on their part that really gets me.

Ukraine Dispatch:

Russians conducted strikes in at least six cities, including Kyiv, Kherson, Kharkiv, Cherkasy, and Lviv. AP has a look inside a Ukrainian platoon that freed Andriivka. At the UN, president Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed the Security Council about Russia breaking the UN Charter.

https://twitter.com/ukraine_world/status/1704473607273881853

Good reads:

  • Justin Trudeau told a climate event at the UN General Assembly that Canada is on track to exceed its methane reduction targets (but we did expand our fossil fuels).
  • As Trudeau has been having pull-aside meetings at the UN, Australia’s foreign minister calls the allegations about Indian agents “credible.”
  • Mélanie Joly relayed Canada’s “grave concerns” about Azerbaijan escalating military action in the Nagorno-Karabakh region involving Armenians.
  • Canada will pull some of its diplomatic staff from India following recent threats.
  • The Privacy Commissioner says Canada Post broke the law by harvesting information from envelopes and packages.
  • The Ombudsman for Responsible Enterprise is investigating Levi Strauss for possible forced labour in their supply chain.
  • Indian officials have suddenly started claiming students in Canada face risks to their personal safety, undermining their own High Commissioner’s comments.
  • American politicians are warning Canada against implementing a possible digital services tax on web giants (which we won’t do if the OECD gets its act together).
  • A group of senators are calling on the government to institute stricter criteria for schools that host international students.
  • Senator Jim Quinn introduced a bill to make the isthmus between New Brunswick and Nova Scotia federal jurisdiction (but that is a money bill and illegitimate).
  • Here is a look at Senator Marilou McPhedran’s outsized Senate expenses (which includes some journalistic malpractice, like getting quotes from the CTF).
  • Liberals from Atlantic Canada are calling out Conservative opposition to a bill that would extend the Atlantic Accords to include renewable energy such as wind farms.
  • Pierre Poilievre tabled his housing bill, which I’m dubious will even be voteable.
  • The Centre Ice Conservatives/Canadians group is calling their new political party “Canadian Future” (which is almost certainly a doomed venture).
  • A second Doug Ford minister, Kaleed Rasheed, resigned from Cabinet and stepped away from caucus over a trip to Vegas with Greenbelt Developers and lying about it.
  • Paul Wells pays a visit to Hamilton East Stoney Creek after the poll numbers look to be shifting there, and talks to the putative Conservative candidate about the mood.

Odds and ends:

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Roundup: Reaction to Monday’s assassination revelations

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In response to Monday’s explosive allegations that agents of the Indian government may have had assassinated a Sikh separatist leader in Canada, the Indian government calls the allegations “absurd” and has expelled a Canadian diplomat in retaliation for the expulsion of one of their diplomats. On his way into Cabinet, Justin Trudeau said that he wasn’t trying to escalate with India but wanted cooperation on the investigation, and said that he did consult with allies before making his speech on Monday.

In terms of international support, the UK offered a fairly tepid statement of support, while the US’ initial lukewarm statement was upgraded to a much more supportive statement later in the day. This is, of course, going to put strain on trade talks, at least in the near term.

https://twitter.com/StephanieCarvin/status/1704216214283624787

There was reaction on the Hill from the World Sikh Organization and the National Council of Canadian Muslims, who said the allegations are not surprising, particularly given the actions of the Modi government to minorities in India. It also sounds like Hardeep Nijjar had been meeting with CSIS on a weekly basis up until his assassination, because of the threats against him, leading to questions about whether our security agencies did enough to protect him (but should probably be asking if they have the capacity to protect threatened community members more). Here is some reaction from Sikh and south Asian MPs and ministers.

Very curiously, Pierre Poilievre came out in the morning to change his tone from his speech on Monday, and is now demanding evidence from the prime minister about the allegations. Even more curious is the fact that there was a take-note debate on the subject in the House of Commons last night, and no Conservative participated, which is very, very unusual. I do have to wonder if this is the influence of new MP Shuvaloy Majumdar, who has been accused of having an anti-Sikh bias in his Indian foreign policy commentary in the past, and whom Conservatives lean heavily on for their foreign policy advice. (Then again, it might just be Poilievre fully engaging in dickish tendencies and not wanting to look like he’s letting Trudeau get any points for this, which is equally a possibility).

For some additional perspective, former CSIS director Richard Fadden and former national security advisor Vincent Rigby talk about what we know, why it’s not a surprise that India has been interfering in Canada, and the reason why it’s difficult to provide necessary protection to some of the people under threat.

Ukraine Dispatch:

Russia’s drone attack on Lviv early Tuesday morning hit a warehouse containing humanitarian supplies, and killed one person. There were more deaths in Kherson due to Russian shelling. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was at the UN General Assembly to call on Russia to end the war so that the world can address more urgent issues like the climate crisis. Back home, there are more corruption allegations surrounding people close to Zelenskyy.

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Roundup: “Credible allegations” of an assassination on Canadian soil

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It was an unexpected moment after Question Period, when Justin Trudeau returned to the House of Commons, and took advantage of the Statements by Ministers slot in Routine Proceedings to speak on an issue of “national security,” and revealed that credible intelligence from Canadian agencies has found that an agent of the Indian government was likely responsible for the murder of a Sikh leader in British Columbia several months ago. Other opposition leaders expressed their shock, and support for the government in this—being unusually less dickish than usual (until they denied Elizabeth May her own opportunity to speak—the dickishness resumed at that point). It also sounds like the timing of this announcement was earlier than anticipated—the Globe and Mail got a leak and went to confirm it with the government, and were asked if they could hold off publishing for a week, and the Globe said they had 24 hours, so Trudeau was forced to do this now, and not after he returned from the UN General Assembly.

https://twitter.com/StephanieCarvin/status/1703856088238416330

https://twitter.com/StephanieCarvin/status/1703879668842016904

Shortly thereafter, Mélanie Joly and Dominic LeBlanc scrummed in the Foyer and said that a high-ranking Indian diplomat was expelled from the country, and it sounds like the government is considering further measures in the near future. It also sounds like this was being discussed at the G20 meeting in India last week, as both the head of CSIS and Trudeau’s National Security Advisor were on the trip, and suddenly the frostiness with Narendra Modi and the cancelled trade mission make so much more sense, being as this was being pursued in back channels during the summit, not only with Indian officials but also with allied countries including the US and the UK.

For background, here is what we know about the victim, and the timeline of events surrounding the murder. India, predictably, refutes this.

Ukraine Dispatch:

There have been Russian attacks on both Lviv in the west and Kherson in the south. Ukrainian forces say they breached Russian lines near Bakhmut in the east, and have reclaimed two more villages. Six deputy defence ministers were fired, possibly in relation to a corruption scandal.

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Roundup: Not a corporate workplace

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Parliament is back today, and while I would normally be fairly excited, it’s feeling less and less so these days, because this current parliament is a fairly terrible one overall, that feels increasingly toxic to be around. But hey, maybe we’ll actually talk about housing and food price inflation, and some things that matter! But who am I kidding—it’ll be a bunch of complete bullshit coming from Pierre Poilievre, some non sequiturs from Jagmeet Singh about “greedflation” and the like, while Justin Trudeua and his front bench will repetitively deliver some canned pabulum that is supposed to make you feel vaguely reassured and like they’re patting you on the head. Because that’s the state of the political discourse these days, and I hate it.

As with anything this time of year, we’re also getting the usual calls about ways to “reform the workplace” of Parliament, as though this were a corporate office and that MPs are all just middle managers. They’re not, and that’s the problem with framing discussions like this. They’re all elected. They are all equal under the constitution, and in the framework of power dynamics. You can’t impose HR standards because you can’t involve an HR structure like this because power is entirely horizontal.

The other thing that we need remember here, however, is that MPs need to divorce Question Period—which is theatre—from the every day, and I see a lot of that in these complaints, and it goes around and around. Why do people do it and get away with it? Because it’s performance, and it’s confrontational for a reason. Heckling has a place, and some of that is to knock MPs and ministers off of their talking points. And that’s why I have a hard time qualifying all of it as “bullying” or “intimidation” because while that does happen, QP is a different beast and we all need to remember that. We also need the Speaker to do his gods damned job, but that’s also the fault of MPs for consistently choosing weak Speakers and ensuring that he has weak Standing Orders to enforce, because they like it that way.

Ukraine Dispatch:

Russian missiles have again hit the grain port at Odessa, while another strike at Kharkiv was allegedly targeting a plant where armoured vehicles undergo repairs. Ukrainian forces have apparently carried out a “special operation” in Sevastopol in occupied Crimea, and reclaimed another village near Bakhmut. Meanwhile, a Ukrainian farmer was killed when his plough hit a landmine, while Norway is reporting that the number of Russian forces staged along their borders are now just twenty percent or less than what they were before Russia invaded Ukraine.

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Roundup: Barely a first step

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With the excitement around Thursday’s announcement on removing HST from purpose-built rental homes, there is a lot more work to do, most of which needs to be done at the provincial and municipal level, but the federal government is starting to step up with more than some funds, which is something. I do worry that a number of provinces will decide that because the federal government is doing something, that they can step back—you know, like a number of them did with healthcare spending where they reduced their own spending by the same amount as an increased federal transfer, which defeats the whole purpose.

So yeah—I’m not popping any champagne just yet that we have some incremental moves. Meanwhile, here’s Mike Moffatt on what needs to happen next.

https://twitter.com/MikePMoffatt/status/1702652572899619115

https://twitter.com/MikePMoffatt/status/1702653469880975742

https://twitter.com/MikePMoffatt/status/1702654065715384432

https://twitter.com/MikePMoffatt/status/1702655085388452163

Ukraine Dispatch:

Russian drones attacked the central Khmelnytskyi region, likely attempting to hit the Starokostiantyniv air base, where the attack on the shipyards in occupied Crimea had been launched. Meanwhile, a Ukrainian sea drone damaged a Russian missile ship off of occupied Crimea. Meanwhile, a pro-Russian former government minister has been detained for 60 days with no option of bail for suspected treason.

https://twitter.com/defenceu/status/1702649870736105582

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