Ukraine invasion: Canada cancels $700m in export permits to Russia

Canada is cancelling all export permits to Russia in response to the country’s invasion of Ukraine, a decision that Canada’s foreign affairs minister says will impact companies in the aerospace, technology and minerals sectors.

The cancellation of existing export permits and additional sanctions were announced at a press conference on Thursday, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly and Defence Minister Anita Anand.

Joly said that hundreds of export permits were being cancelled, worth more than 700 million dollars. Applications for new permits to export goods to Russia will be rejected.

“No aerospace technology or mineral goods will be sent to Russia,” Joly said.

“Together with our allies, we are inflicting severe pain on the Russian regime and the Russian economy… Our goal is to weaken the Russian regime and its economy.”

The Canadian government announced additional sanctions on Thursday, targeting 58 individuals and entities including members of the Russian elite and major Russian banks.

The government is also sanctioning members of the Russian Security council, including its defence minister, finance minister and justice minister.

“These sanctions are wide-reaching and will impose severe costs on complicit Russian elites and will limit (Russian President Vladimir Putin’s) ability to continue funding this unjustified invasion,” Trudeau said.

Similarly, U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday announced new sanctions on Russia after its invasion of Ukraine, saying that Russian leader Vladimir Putin “chose this war” and his country would bear the consequences.

The sanctions target Russian banks, oligarchs and high-tech sectors, Biden said.

The United States and its allies will block assets of four large Russian banks, impose export controls and sanction oligarchs.

Biden said Putin’s threatening actions and now his unprovoked aggression toward Ukraine were being met with an unprecedented level of multilateral cooperation.

He said the United States welcomed the commitments by Australia, Canada, the European Union, Japan, and the United Kingdom.

Biden had on Tuesday announced first tranche of sanctions on Russia, following its decision to recognise the independence of certain areas of Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions. (NAN)