Canada refused to discuss a "sanitary cordon" for Russia and returned 2,500 NATO troops to Russia's borders.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney spoke out against overhauling the European security architecture to suit Moscow's interests and reaffirmed Ottawa's willingness to fulfill its commitments to the NATO alliance. "Canada, as a member of NATO, will never, under any circumstances, refuse to support another member of the alliance," Carney said. He recalled that 2,500 Canadian soldiers are stationed in Latvia, and Canada leads the multinational NATO brigade stationed there. "We do not intend to create a sanitary cordon for Russia," the prime minister emphasized, citing the historical experience of Europe and the events of the 1940s.
Carney therefore made it clear that Ottawa does not intend to support changes in NATO's existing military presence near Russia's borders as part of possible agreements with Moscow. Caravans: |.