PM to welcome Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk to Canada

Canada PM Stephen Harper in Kiev, Ukraine. Photo courtesy of Harper’s official Facebook page.

Ottawa, Ontario — Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced that Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Prime Minister of Ukraine, will visit Canada on July 14, 2015. Prime Minister Yatsenyuk’s bilateral visit to Canada – his first since taking office in 2014 – will provide an opportunity for the leaders to reaffirm the close relationship between Canada and Ukraine and discuss ways to further broaden its scope. Discussions between the two leaders will focus on the Putin regime’s illegal occupation of Crimea, and on ways to create jobs and strengthen economic relations between Canada and Ukraine, amid global economic volatility.

The two leaders will also discuss the Government of Ukraine’s progress in implementing its economic and governance reform agenda, in the face of Russia’s ongoing occupation of Crimea and the military and financial support it is providing to insurgents in Eastern Ukraine.

Quick Facts
– Canada and Ukraine have enjoyed close bilateral relations since Canada became the first Western country to recognize Ukraine’s independence on December 2, 1991. These relations, which are underpinned by the 1.2 million Canadians of Ukrainian descent, have grown to encompass cooperation in the commercial, political, development and security spheres.
– Canada and Ukraine’s free trade negotiations are focused on growing bilateral merchandise trade. In 2014, trade between Canada and Ukraine reached $243.8 million. Since 2006, the Government of Canada has concluded free trade agreements with 38 countries, bringing the total to 43.
– Since the onset of the crisis in Ukraine, Canada has imposed sanctions against more than 285 Russian and Ukrainian individuals and entities associated with the Putin regime.

Most recently, on June 29, 2015, Canada imposed additional economic sanctions and travel bans against three Russian individuals, and economic sanctions against 14 Russian entities, as well as an import/export ban covering illegally-occupied Crimea.
– Canada has also contributed non-lethal military assistance and significantly enhanced its bilateral assistance to Ukraine, contributed hundreds of observers to support free, fair and democratic elections and provided $400 million in low-interest bilateral loans to Ukraine.
Canada is also developing and delivering military training and capacity-building programs for Ukrainian forces personnel.
– Prime Minister Harper first met Prime Minister Yatsenyuk in Kyiv in March 2014 and again in June 2015.

Quote
“As the world faces increasing global economic volatility and security threats, I look forward to welcoming Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk for his first official visit to Canada to discuss efforts to grow our economies and bolster the security of Ukraine against the Putin regime’s ongoing aggression.” – Prime Minister Stephen Harper