Newsletter - may 12, 2023
Canada continues to stand with the people of Ukraine. To that end, it was my honour to welcome two Allied counterparts, Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence, Mariusz Błaszczak, and Latvian Defence Minister Ināra Mūrniece, to Ottawa this week. We discussed our collaboration to support Ukrainians, and Minister Mūrniece and I announced that Canada and Latvia will jointly train junior Ukrainian officers on Latvian soil. This new initiative will build on the work already done by Canada to train 36,000 Ukrainian Armed Forces members.
As I’ve said since day one: my top priority as Minister of National Defence is to create meaningful culture change at the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces so that these institutions can continue to deliver results for Canadians. On May 11th, we provided several updates on our reforms:
First, the Sexual Misconduct Response Centre has now changed its name to the Sexual Misconduct Support and Resource Centre. The SMSRC has launched an Independent Legal Assistance Program for individuals who have experienced sexual misconduct. Further, the SMSRC is also officially expanding its services to Cadets, Junior Canadian Rangers and family members of the Defence community aged 16+.
We are also continuing to work on addressing Madame Arbour’s recommendations to remove CAF jurisdiction over several criminal sexual offences, and we’re seeking external experts to lead a comprehensive review of the military colleges. Our efforts to support survivors and deliver meaningful culture change are moving full steam ahead. There is real momentum behind this mission – and I sincerely thank and admire all DND employees and CAF members contributing to these efforts.
Canada Summer Jobs - Job Bank Now Open!
This summer, more than 70,000 CSJ placements are being made available for young people between the ages of 15 and 30. Young job seekers can now find new job opportunities in our Oakville community on jobbank.gc.ca/youth and the Job Bank mobile app in a variety of important emerging sectors such as the digital economy, green jobs, environmental science and technology, and natural resources.
Visit of the Latvian Defence Minister & Further Aid for Ukraine's Armed Forces.
Our Canadian Armed Forces are renowned for Operation UNIFIER, which has trained over 36,000 Ukrainian troops so far. Earlier this week, Latvia's Defence Minister, Ināra Mūrniece, visited Canada. We announced a new joint initiative through which Canadian and Latvian armed forces members will train Ukrainians together in Latvia.
This new training initiative will instruct Ukrainian junior officers on the process of planning and orders, manoeuvre coordination, intelligence reconnaissance, and other skills that they need to defend their country's sovereignty.
This training comes in addition to the Canadian Armed Forces’ other ongoing deployments through Operation UNIFIER in support of Ukraine in Poland and the United Kingdom.
During Minister Mūrniece's visit, we also reaffirmed our commitment to implementing the Canada-Latvia Joint Declaration signed in June 2022 at the Madrid Summit. In this joint declaration, Canada agreed to:
continue to lead NATO forces as the Framework Nation in Latvia;
work with Latvia and NATO Allies to generate and stage forces in order to surge to a combat capable brigade;
establish and lead elements of a forward brigade command and control;
and be prepared to provide critical capabilities to operations, such as ammunition and explosives, air defence systems, and anti-tank weapons systems.
The expansion of our training for Ukrainian military officers will contribute to Ukraine’s battlefield success. I thank Minister Mūrniece for her strong cooperation, and I thank the people of Latvia for their ongoing hospitality to members of the Canadian Armed Forces.
Bilateral Meetings with the Polish Deputy Prime Minister & Minister of Defence.
On May 8th, I was pleased to welcome Minister Mariusz Błaszczak, Poland's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence, to Ottawa.
Canada and Poland have both been leaders in providing assistance to Ukraine, with Canada having committed over $1 billion in military aid and over $8 billion in combined military, economic, humanitarian, and other aid. Under Operation UNIFIER, Canada currently has approximately 80 Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) personnel deployed to Poland, where they are:
Training Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) sappers on a range of basic and advanced engineering skills, engineering reconnaissance, the use of explosives for demolition work, and demining;
Training AFU tank crews on the use of Leopard 2 main battle tanks; and
Training members of the AFU with the skills needed to save lives in combat situations.
Over the past few months, I've had incredible discussions with Polish-Canadian community leaders who have shown remarkable dedication and compassion by contributing their time and resources to support Ukrainian arrivals in Canada. I commend the leadership shown by the Polish-Canadian community and by the Polish government to support Ukrainians.
Oakville Fire Fighters
Last weekend, I caught up with Oakville firefighters who are talking about best practices during Emergency Preparedness Week which ran from May 7-13. Many thanks for keeping us informed and for all the hard work you do keeping our community safe!
Asian Heritage Month
During the month of May, we acknowledge the many achievements and contributions that Asian communities have made to the fabric of Canada. Together, let’s celebrate their impact and honour their resilience, hard work and dedication in enriching our diverse society. Happy Asian Heritage Month!
Jewish Heritage Month
May is also Jewish Heritage Month – and we join the Jewish community in marking this occasion. Our country is the proud home to about 400,000 people of Jewish heritage, making it the fourth-largest community in the world. Canada would not be what it is today without Jewish Canadians. Happy Jewish Heritage Month!