PM Trudeau rejects Russia referendum, again promises sanctions
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has condemned votes in occupied parts of Ukraine to join Russia, but gave no timeline for sanctions Canada promised a week ago.
Trudeau says the referendums are an attempt by Russia to redraw the map as it loses territory in the war it started in February.
Moscow claims people in the four regions it occupies voted upwards of 87 per cent to join Russia, but western governments say the process was rigged.
Trudeau says Russia is trying to justify its war by claiming territory so that it can paint Ukraine as the aggressor.
The prime minister also phoned Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday to pledge his support for the country.
Yet Trudeau had no timeline for when Canada would sanction more Russians.
"We are going to have stronger sanctions; those will be announced very soon," Trudeau said, arguing Canada is among the countries that has sanctioned Russia the most.
Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly announced more sanctions were coming last Thursday.
Ottawa has similarly provided no details since announcing Monday that it would sanction Iranian officials for the human-rights crackdown that followed the death of Mahsa Amini, after she was arrested by the country's morality police.
Trudeau said he promised Zelensky that Canada will do what it can to make sure the "sham referendums" aren't endorsed by other countries.
"We're also going to continue working with the world to recognize that what Putin is trying to do is completely illegitimate," Trudeau told reporters Thursday afternoon.
He was visiting Quebec's Iles-de-la-Madeleine to tour damage caused by post-tropical storm Fiona last weekend.
Earlier Thursday, Defence Minister Anita Anand said Russia's votes violate the international rules-based order that has been in place since the end of the Second World War.
"Canada condemns these actions and I personally am disgusted by them, as they are reprehensible," she said.
"Ukraine's territory will always remain Ukraine's territory."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 29, 2022.
-- With files from Lee Berthiaume in Ottawa and Emilie Bergeron in Iles-de-la-Madeleine
IN DEPTH
Former prime minister Brian Mulroney dies at 84
Former Canadian prime minister and Conservative stalwart Brian Mulroney has died at age 84. Over his impressive career, the passionate and ambitious politician, businessman, husband, father, and grandfather left an unmistakable mark on the country.
Who is supporting, opposing new online harms bill?
Now that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's sweeping online harms legislation is before Parliament, allowing key stakeholders, major platforms, and Canadians with direct personal experience with abuse to dig in and see what's being proposed, reaction is streaming in. CTVNews.ca has rounded up reaction, and here's how Bill C-63 is going over.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
The first public hearings on foreign interference in Canada have begun. What you need to know
The public hearings portion of the federal inquiry into foreign interference in Canadian elections and democratic institutions got underway this week. Heading into this process, here's what you need to know.
TREND LINE What Nanos' tracking tells us about Canadians' mood, party preference heading into 2024
Heading into a new year, Canadians aren't feeling overly optimistic about the direction the country is heading, with the number of voters indicating negative views about the federal government's performance at the highest in a decade, national tracking from Nanos Research shows.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
opinion Don Martin: Pierre Poilievre's road to apparent victory will soon start to get rougher
Pierre Poilievre and his Conservatives appear to be on cruise control to a rendezvous with the leader's prime ministerial ambition, but in his latest column for CTVNews.ca, Don Martin questions whether the Conservative leader may be peaking too soon.
opinion Don Martin: The Trudeau lessons from Brian Mulroney's legacy start with walking away
Justin Trudeau should pay very close attention to the legacy treatment afforded former prime minister Brian Mulroney, who died on Thursday at age 84, writes columnist Don Martin.
opinion Don Martin: ArriveCan debacle may be even worse than we know from auditor's report
It's been 22 years since a former auditor general blasted the Chretien government after it 'broke just about every rule in the book' in handing out private sector contracts in the sponsorship scandal. In his column for CTVNews.ca, Don Martin says the book has been broken anew with everything that went on behind the scenes of the 'dreaded' ArriveCan app.
opinion Don Martin: Despite his horrible year, Trudeau's determined to roll the dice again
In his column for CTVNews.ca, political commentator Don Martin says you can't help but admire Justin Trudeau's defiance and audacity of hope despite his 'horrible' 2023, as it appears Trudeau is insisting on leading the Liberals into the next federal election.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
For the first time in report's history, Canada's air quality worse than U.S.
Thanks to wildfires, air quality in Canada is now worse than in the U.S., according to the 6th Annual World Air Quality Report.
A newspaper says video of Prince William and Kate should halt royal rumour mill. That's a tall order
Prince William and his wife Catherine have been filmed at a farm shop near their Windsor home, The Sun newspaper reported -- the first footage of Kate since she had abdominal surgery for an unspecified condition two months ago.
'You ask for your money, they disappear': Ontario man loses $17K to AI crypto scam
A Toronto man is spreading the word of a cryptocurrency scam that lures victims using AI-generated news sites after he lost $17,000 in investments.
DEVELOPING Canada's annual inflation rate ticked down to 2.8 per cent in February, defying expectations
Statistics Canada says the annual inflation rate edged down to 2.8 per cent in February.
Hertz CEO out following electric car 'horror show'
The company, which announced in January it was selling 20,000 of the electric vehicles in its fleet, or about a third of the EVs it owned, is now replacing the CEO who helped build up that fleet, giving it the company’s fifth boss in just four years.
High thoughts: The habits of Canadian cannabis users are revealed in a new StatCan report
Statistics Canada has conducted a series of surveys to measure the impacts of legalized cannabis since the Cannabis Act took effect in 2018. The latest one, the 2023 National Cannabis Survey, sheds light on users' preferences and habits last year.
Demand soars for solar eclipse glasses in Canada. Are they worth buying?
The demand for total solar eclipse glasses used to safely view the rare celestial event has been ramping up as sellers, along with astronomy and eye-care experts in Canada, warn that viewing the eclipse with the naked eye is dangerous.
Trump says Jews who vote for Democrats 'hate Israel' and their religion
Former U.S. president Donald Trump on Monday charged that Jews who vote for Democrats 'hate Israel' and hate 'their religion,' igniting a firestorm of criticism from the White House and Jewish leaders.
Toronto family doctor who called patient's body 'perfect' suspended for 3 months: tribunal
A family doctor in Toronto has been suspended for three months after a disciplinary tribunal found that he failed to follow proper protocols while examining a patient's breasts and made inappropriate comments about her body.