EDMONTON – Peter Goldring, Member of Parliament for Edmonton East, has released his Ukraine Mission Report after spending 30 days in the country in May.
Goldring was in Ukraine for the entire Orange Revolution in 2004, has travelled there several times since.
On Monday he said it is time for nations to declare “total economic war on Russia.”
In a news release, he states that “nations of the free world” must unite against totalitarian regimes, terrorism, subterfuge, deceit and Russia’s Vladimir Putin.
Goldring took part in the mission to assess the Ukrainian election on May 25. During that time he analyzed minority discrimination, religion’s role in politics, and whether residents of the newly annexed Crimea were willing and able to vote.
In his report, he noted that Russia made voting in the region extremely problematic. He said armoured troops carried Russian soldiers throughout the area in an “organized campaign of intimidation.”
Goldring believes, by taking action against Russia, Canada can lead by example, decide “who we will engage economically and who we will not”, and encourage other nations to do the same.
READ MORE: Canada to slap more sanctions against Russia over downed plane
His list of recommendations includes:
- Expel Russia from the United Nations Security Council
- Expel Russia from Organization for Cooperation and Security of Europe
- Expel Russia from G8
- Establish a Kyiv Patriarch for the Ukrainian Orthodox Church presently with Moscow Patriarch under Russia Putin influence
Goldring believes economic warfare is the first step in stopping Putin and his totalitarian regime.
WATCH: Edmonton MP Peter Goldring speaks to Global News following a trip to Ukraine.
“Quite frankly, Ukraine is a very important part of Canadian fabric and life,” Goldring said during an interview with Global News on Dec. 12. “There are 1.2 million people of Ukraine background in Canada.”
The full Ukraine Mission Report was released June 24.
A new internal government report has once again raised questions about the Harper government’s penchant for sending large teams of Canadian election monitors to Ukraine.
The March report, prepared by an outside consultant for the Foreign Affairs Department, is the latest in a series of internal government assessments that raise red flags about the missions. The reports began in 2004 under the Liberals and have been repeatedly embraced by the Conservatives, most recently in May.
READ MORE: New report questions Canada’s Ukraine election-monitoring missions
The Canadian Press obtained a copy of the independent audit of Canada’s Election Observation Missions program, known as EOM, which notes that the multilateral OSCE missions are widely viewed as a much better idea than the Canadian bilateral ones.
The consultants, Plan:Net Limited, presented the Foreign Affairs Department with its 195-page report on March 20.
With files from The Canadian Press
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