Sanctions against Moscow: A turbine puts Ottawa in a dilemma with Europe | War in Ukraine

The Canada says “trying to find a solution that will work for everyone”.

A turbine from Russian giant Gazprom, being repaired in Canada, creates a delicate situation for the Canadian government, which would be in breach of its own sanctions against Moscow if it were to hand it over to Gazprom so as not to harm the economy. #x27;gas supply from Germany.

From Saint John, Newfoundland and Labrador, where he was on Friday, the Canadian Minister of Resources natural resources Jonathan Wilkinson recognized that Canada is stuck between a rock and a hard place. We are discussing this with the Ukrainian government and the German government and it is not a simple matter.

Wilkinson said Canada is working to try to find a solution that will work for everyone. He also clarified that the gas turbine at the heart of the dispute is in Canada to be refurbished.

A source from Ukraine's Ministry of Energy told Reuters on Friday that Ukraine opposes Ottawa hands over the turbine to Gazprom. The source recalled that the sanctions imposed on Vladimir Putin's government prohibit the transfer of any gas-related equipment.

Should Canada return this piece of equipment from Gazprom's Nord Stream pipeline, we will no doubt be appealing to our European colleagues to have this decision re-evaluated, the Ukrainian ministry source told Reuters.

Reuters further claims to have received a letter from Ukraine's energy minister dated June in which he urged Canada not to hand over the piece of equipment to Gazprom. According to what this letter from Minister German Galushchenko would say, Russia has ample means to ensure the transit of Russian gas so as to operate at maximum capacity, even without the turbine in question.

On June 15, Siemens Energy confirmed to Reuters that a gas turbine used in compressor stations was in Montreal for maintenance and could not be returned to Russia in due to sanctions imposed by Canada.

Siemens Energy – a German company with facilities in Canada – said it had informed the Canadian and German governments of the situation, saying it was seeking of a viable solution.

The situation is not simple, repeated Jonathan Wilkinson, explaining that Canada must be sensitive to the plight of the Ukrainians and continue to fully support the sanctions against Moscow. But on the other hand, the purpose of the sanctions is not to penalize our allies and thus destroy the economy of Germany, Italy, Slovakia and Austria.

According to Wilkinson, the Gazprom pipeline not only supplies Germany, but a number of other European countries with gas and the Russian government is using the turbine as an excuse to cut gas supplied to Germany and other countries.

This dispute comes a few days before the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline is completely shut down (due to maintenance work), which increases fears in Germany, which is highly dependent on Russian gas.

Moreover, the operator of Ukrainian gas pipelines on Friday denounced the gas blackmail exerted by Moscow, when it was learned that the transit of Russian gas to Ukraine fell in June to its lowest level. The Ukrainian operator argues that Russia can ship large volumes of gas to Europe through other routes, which could also replace the Nord Stream 1 pipeline.

Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly arrives at the meeting of her G20 counterparts in Bali.

Separately, on Friday, Canada announced that it was imposing new sanctions regarding Russia's illegal and unjustifiable invasion of Ukraine, specifically targeting the Russian media industry.

< p class="e-p">The Russian propaganda machine must answer for its lies, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said from Bali, where she is attending the G20 foreign ministers' meeting. These new sanctions, she said, target 29 Russian operatives and 15 Russian organizations that are carrying out a campaign of disinformation, manipulation and propaganda on behalf of the Russian government.

The government has also created a webpage to describe its efforts to counter disinformation, in the context of the invasion of Ukraine by the regime of Vladimir Putin.

These recent sanctions imposed on Russia also affect the import of gold; raw, semi-manufactured or in the form of jewelry and coins.

With regard to sanctions against Russia's oil, gas and chemical industries, Minister Joly had banned, in June, the export of 28 services essential to their operation. These industries account for about 50% of Russia's federal budget revenue, according to Canada.

With information from Agence France-Presse, La Presse canadienne, Reuters, and CBC