Canada pledges unlimited funds to Ukraine despite endemic corruption

by Dan Fournier, published Wednesday, Jan. 25, 12:05 EST on fournier.substack.com

Jan 25, 2023

Photo of Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy taken on April 15, 2022, during an address to his nation. Source: Wikimedia Commons.

Last Tuesday, the Ukrainian government confirmed the resignation of multiple high-ranking officials amid large-scale corruption allegations.

Over a dozen members from Zelenskyy’s Cabinet of Ministers have quit their posts over cases ranging from bribery, embezzlement, mismanagement of aid funds for the purchase of food and other military supplies, as exposed in Ukrainian media.

Moreover, Ukrainian news outlets have criticised officials who splurged on luxury items such as high-end sports cars, mansions, and vacations to sunny destinations abroad while citizens are suffering from the perils of war. Kyrylo Tymoshenko, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of the Ukraine, figures among a long list of officials under scrutiny.

“We are waiting for Patriots [missiles]. We are looking closely at Abrams [tanks]. Thousands of such examples are possible! And everyone can become a big business by working with Ukraine,” stated President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a video address to American business participants during a meeting of the National Association of State Chambers.

Michael Tracey @mtracey

Addressing a Chambers of Commerce meeting in Boca Raton today, Zelensky thanks BlackRock, JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, and others for their support of Ukraine. Adds that sending Ukraine heavier weapons, like Abrams tanks, represents a "big business" opportunity for US corporations

The call for additional military support from Western nations amidst the latest corruption scandal which has seen more than a dozen officials ousted remains a highly contentious issue.

A week ago, Canadian Minister of National Defence Anita Anand wrote an op-ed in the National Post titled Canada will stand with Ukraine as long as it takes to win freedom, essentially pledging unlimited funds for “as long as it takes” for the Ukraine to win the war.

“Over the past 12 months, Canada has spent over $5 billion in aid for Ukraine — including arms and military equipment, ammunition and artillery shells, vehicles and training, as well as humanitarian and economic assistance,” stated Anand, a trained lawyer with no prior service in any of Canada’s Armed Forces service branches.

This followed a pledge of 200 armored vehicles by the defence minister during her recent surprise visit to Kyiv.

In a related tweet whereby Anand stated that “Assistance to Ukraine is not just the right thing to do; it is at the core of our own national interests,” a retired 20-year veteran Army sergeant from Saskatoon who goes by the Twitter handle Shaughn.SGT(ret) offered his discontent on the matter, replying,

“What national interests? Money laundering? WEF? When will you start to look after Canadians interests? Start to invest in the CAF instead of their military? It IS NOT the right thing to do. You are OUR Minister of National Defense. NOT the Ukraine's.”

Shaughn.SGT(ret) @PrairieVeteran

@AnitaAnandMP What national interests? Money laundering? 🙄 WEF? When will you start to look after Canadians interests? Start to invest in the CAF instead of their military? It IS NOT the right thing to do. You are OUR Minister of National Defense. NOT the Ukraine's. Best to remember that

With over $5 billion committed thus far, Canada’s involvement in the Russia-Ukraine war has rattled many Canadians, including veterans who have been offered assisted-suicide to alleviate their post-service pain and anguish, and getting their bank accounts frozen for being outspoken.

Addendum 2023-01-29:

Thanks to a commenter, Joe, here is yet another invaluable resource showing how NATO, the West, and Zelenskyy’s own Nazi-loving forces have been exacerbating this conflict. The speaker in the video is Dr. Natalya Vitrenko, a Kyiv-born Ukrainian politician and candidate in the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election. She offers an astute inside perspective on the events that led up to the current mess, pretty much predicting is horrendous consequences. With these videos one must always consider who is backing or behind it to vet its influences. This one is from the Schiller Institute, a German-based political and economic think tank that is strongly associated with LaRouche Movement which promotes the late Lyndon Larouche’s, an American, ideas for peace and economic conservatism. For more on their ideas and positions (about the USA, the economy, and geopolitics), I invite the reader to read any work by its researcher Harley Schlanger, an American based in Germany, or watch any of his videos (he is often a guest on SGTReport and X22 Report).