Canada backs tougher U.S. measures on Russia
OTTAWA — Canada did not object Thursday to new U.S. sanctions that could harm the global economy to protest Russia's takeover of Crimea and discourage any military incursion into mainland Ukraine.
The U.S. upped the ante with the toughest measures to date after weeks of featherweight initiatives announced by Canada, the U.S. and European countries were ignored and mocked by Russian officials.
President Barack Obama said Thursday the White House now plans to go after key sectors of the Russian economy -- likely oil and gas -- and a bank and wealthy Russians with holdings in the U.S., on top of Kremlin officials who had already been targeted.
"This is not our preferred outcome," Obama said. "These sanctions would not only have a significant impact on the Russian economy, but could also be disruptive to the global economy." Moscow responded to the U.S. blacklist by slapping travel restrictions on American legislators, including House Speaker John Boehner, Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid, a trio of White House officials and others.
"We have repeatedly warned that sanctions are a double-edged instrument and would hit the United States like a boomerang," the Russian Foreign Ministry said. "There must be no doubt: We will respond adequately to every hostile thrust."
Canada has been in lockstep with its allies on the rhetoric front and has endorsed all U.S. efforts to date since troops were deployed to the Black Sea peninsula and the subsequent annexation of Crimea.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper is heading to Ukraine on Saturday to provide moral support to the interim government.
He'll also make stops in The Netherlands and Germany to rally his counterparts, including G7 leaders attending an emergency meeting in The Hague, to take a tougher stance against Russia because, unlike Canada, they have the muscle to do so.
Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird is accompanying Harper to Kiev.
"First and foremost we've got to stand up for freedom," Baird told Sun News. "All freedom-loving countries have got to stand together.
"It's tremendously important that we speak loudly and clearly. This is not a time for moral relativism. It's a time for tough talk."
U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel received assurances on Thursday from his Russian counterpart, Sergei Shoigu, that Russian troops along Ukraine's eastern border had no plans to enter the country, a Pentagon spokesman said.
Rear Admiral John Kirby said Hagel spoke to Shoigu for nearly an hour by telephone and was "clear and firm" in telling him that with Russian forces in control in Crimea, they were responsible for any incidents there.
During the call, Hagel asked for an explanation of why Russia was deploying forces along Ukraine's eastern and southern borders and was assured by Shoigu they were conducting exercises and had no intention of crossing the border, the spokesman said.
Still, Ukrainian paratroopers with armoured vehicles were digging in on Thursday near the Russian border as the military demonstrated its presence in the east.
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