AS IT HAPPENED Wildfire reaches Jasper Wednesday night, causes 'significant loss'
One of two wildfires threatening Jasper National Park reached the townsite Wednesday night and caused 'significant loss.'
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau emerged Saturday in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, joining other world leaders at the site of one of the war's first and fiercest battles to mark the second anniversary of the brutal Russian invasion.
Trudeau appeared at Hostomel airport alongside European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo in a show of global solidarity.
Behind them, the scorched husks of destroyed aircraft and the blackened walls of the airport just outside the capital served as a stark backdrop, a bitter reminder of the invasion's earliest days.
"Putin was sure he could easily take strategic targets like this airport. Russian forces tried to make quick work of Hostomel airport — and with it, Kyiv," Trudeau said in prepared remarks.
"Well, we are standing here today because he was wrong."
Russian President Vladimir Putin launched his long-feared invasion on Feb. 24, 2022. His paratroopers raided the airport just hours after the start of what he called a "special military operation" in the country.
Two years later, the wreckage of that battle remained strewn behind the leaders as they took their turns at the podium — lingering evidence of both an early triumph as well as the grinding, bloody conflict that continues to rage.
"Putin cannot win," Trudeau said in his speech. "Ukraine will see victory, just like what happened on this ground two years ago."
Former British prime minister Boris Johnson was also on hand for the anniversary, as well as Defence Minister Bill Blair and Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland. U.S. President Joe Biden was not expected to attend.
As he has done from the outset, Trudeau again vowed to ensure Canada stands with Ukraine for as long as it takes to secure victory.
But the federal government has yet to deliver all military aid it has promised, prompting critics to accuse the prime minister of going back on his word.
Trudeau is expected to participate in several commemorations throughout the day, including a wreath-laying, before ending the day with a joint news conference.
"You are fighting for your sovereignty, for your territory, for your language, for your culture, for your democracy," Trudeau said. "But also for our democracy."
Despite similar sentiments from across the global coalition of support, European countries are struggling to find enough stocks to send to Kyiv, while $60-billion worth of U.S. help is stalled over political differences.
The delays have frustrated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who fears — like others — that such holdups amid domestic political squabbles are playing right into the hands of an ever-patient Putin.
Just last week, Russia took complete control of the city of Avdiivka, about 706 kilometres east of the capital, where troops had battled fiercely over the local chemical plant for weeks.
And a Russian drone attack late Friday struck a residential building in the southern city of Odesa, killing at least one person and injuring several others.
The presence of world leaders in Kyiv will be on display throughout the day Saturday to demonstrate a bulwark of international support and pay tribute to Ukraine's continued resilience.
Zelenskyy himself warned allies just last week that an "artificial deficit" of arms risks giving Russia a dangerous advantage.
Meanwhile, Biden has been cajoling and criticizing Republicans in Congress to help pass legislation to keep the support flowing.
"The failure to support Ukraine at this critical moment will not be forgotten. Now is the time for us to stand strong with Ukraine and stand united with our allies and partners," Biden said in a statement.
"Now is the time to prove that the United States stands up for freedom and bows down to no one."
Biden has chided his political opponents, including former and would-be future president Donald Trump, for inflamed rhetoric around Ukraine and a lack of support that borders on what the current commander-in-chief calls "criminal neglect."
Trudeau has reached for similar reprovals when it comes to Canada's Opposition Conservatives and their recent decision to vote against a modernized free-trade deal with Ukraine.
But in contrast to the U.S., both parties have tried to position themselves domestically as the more committed ally: Canada is home to the world's second-largest Ukrainian diaspora population, after Russia.
On Friday, Canada announced sanctions against 10 more Russian officials and businessmen and 153 entities, in co-ordination with the United States and the United Kingdom. The European Union also announced new sanctions ahead of the anniversary of the war.
The prime minister's show of solidarity in Kyiv also provides an opportunity to help restore the relationship's lustre after a gaffe during Zelenskyy's visit to Ottawa last fall set off an international embarrassment.
With the Ukrainian president in the House of Commons, members of Parliament paid a war hero's tribute to a Ukrainian-Canadian veteran who turned out to have fought for the Nazis in the Second World War.
The incident made headlines around the world, prompted a prime ministerial apology, cost former House Speaker Anthony Rota his job and provided ample fodder for Russia's propaganda machine.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 24, 2024.
By Laura Osman in Warsaw with files from Nathan Denette in Kyiv and The Associated Press
One of two wildfires threatening Jasper National Park reached the townsite Wednesday night and caused 'significant loss.'
Alberta has called in the Canadian Armed Forces to help assist with the worsening wildfire situation in the province.
U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday delivered a solemn call to voters to defend the country's democracy as he laid out in an Oval Office address his decision to drop his bid for reelection and throw his support behind Vice President Kamala Harris.
Staff at a Barrie child care centre say they are frustrated by what they call a local MPP's inadequate response after a car crashed through a window in one of the toddler rooms.
The North American Aerospace Defence Command (Norad) intercepted two Russian and two Chinese bombers flying near Alaska Wednesday in what appears to be the first time the two countries have been intercepted while operating together.
An analyst and an assistant coach with Canada Soccer are being removed from the Canadian Olympic Team and 'sent home immediately,' according to the Canadian Olympic Committee.
After a handful of Australian water polo players tested positive for COVID-19 this week, questions have emerged around how the spread of the disease will be mitigated at the Summer Olympic Games in Paris.
A B.C. man who was hired to help a non-profit build a food hub but instead spent the money on personal expenses – including travel, restaurants, booze and cannabis – has been ordered to pay more than $120,000 in damages.
Two people are dead and two others suffered serious injuries following a shooting that police have described as a 'gun battle' outside a plaza in Scarborough, Ont. early Wednesday morning.
A local First Nations elder and veteran is helping to bring the Ojibwe language to a well-known film for the first time.
A cat who fled her Montreal home nearly a decade ago has been reunited with her family after being found in Ottawa.
A woman in Waterloo, Ont. is out thousands of dollars for a car crash she wasn’t involved in.
A swarm of bees living in a lamppost in Winnipeg’s Sage Creek neighbourhood has found a new home for its hive.
Around 100 acres of Manitoba Crown Land near the Saskatchewan border is being returned to the Métis community.
Nova Scotia is suspending the licensed Cape Breton moose hunt for three years due to what the province is calling a “significant drop” in the population.
A well-known childhood prank known as 'nicky nicky nine doors,' or 'ding dong ditch,' has escalated into a more serious game that could lead to charges for some Surrey, B.C. teens.
It's been more than a month since their good friend was seriously hurt in an accident and two teens from Riverview, N.B., are still having a hard time dealing with it.
Halifax bridges have collected thousands of coins from around the world.