OTTAWA (Reuters) – Canada’s Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday accused his main political opponent on the right of turning his back on Ukraine due to pressure from Donald Trump, the leading Republican candidate in the upcoming U.S. presidential election.
All 109 Conservative lawmakers in the House of Commons opposed updated legislation for the free trade agreement between Canada and Ukraine in a preliminary vote on Tuesday, which received unanimous support from all other parties.
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, who is ahead in all polls, stated that his party did not support the bill because it would require Ukraine to adopt a carbon tax. However, the trade bill only includes language that the two countries will “promote” carbon pricing and mitigation, without provisions that force such a plan.
Trudeau criticized the Conservative Party of Canada, stating, “To see the Conservative Party of Canada decide not to support Ukraine with something they need with the absurd excuse that it’s because Ukraine is going to put a price on pollution, is ridiculous.” He made these comments in French at a news conference in Newfoundland before addressing the issue in English.
He later accused Canadian Conservatives of being influenced by right-wing, American “MAGA” thinking, which has caused them to abandon their support for Ukraine.
Trump, who is aiming for re-election in 2024 and is the frontrunner for his party’s presidential nomination, has been openly critical of U.S. support for Kyiv and has suggested that he could end the war in 24 hours if re-elected.
Canada has the second-largest Ukrainian expatriate community after Russia, and the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, a lobby group, expressed disappointment with the Conservatives’ vote against the trade agreement.
On Thursday, Poilievre reiterated his support for Ukraine and a free-trade deal, but insisted that he “voted against Justin Trudeau forcing a carbon tax into that pre-existing agreement.”
However, on Friday, a spokesman for Poilievre avoided commenting on whether the leader was being influenced by Trump, but stated that it was disappointing for Liberals to include the “promotion of punishing carbon taxes into a binding trade deal for the first time in Canadian history.”
Opinion polls indicate that Poilievre would defeat Trudeau and likely win a majority if an election were held today. One of Poilievre’s main promises is to remove Canada’s carbon tax if elected, citing concerns about the cost of living amid high inflation.
(Reporting by Steve Scherer, editing by Deepa Babington)
