Canada could send more soldiers to Eastern Europe if the situation calls for it, according to Minister Melanie Jolie.

As she passed through Citadel of Quebec to meet her Baltic counterparts, the Secretary of State noted that 3,400 Canadian soldiers are “on reserve,” many of whom are stationed near Quebec.

So if NATO needs a larger Canadian presence, we know that NATO has 3,400 soldiers at its disposal. And why this is so important to people here in Quebec is that many of these soldiers come from [la base militaire de] Valcartier,” said Mr.^I Jolie during a joint press conference with representatives of Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia.

However, there is no doubt about sending troops to Ukraine.

According to the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), 495 soldiers from Valcarter are currently deployed in Latvia and elsewhere in Europe as part of the “Reinsurance” deterrent mission.

By the fall, most of them should be at home and would be replaced by troops from the other regiments to maintain the Canadian presence.

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There are currently approximately 1,300 CAF members on Latvian soil, making REASSURANCE Canada the largest international military deployment at this time.

Parliamentary Secretary of the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Zanda Kalnica Lukasivica stressed the “gratitude” of her people to Canada for their support.

“The Russian aggression against Ukraine has fundamentally changed the global situation,” she added.

The diplomats’ discussions focused on coordinating efforts to respond to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, ensuring “collective security” and preventing energy and food crises caused by the conflict.

“We are also exerting maximum pressure on the Putin regime by imposing severe sanctions on it and we have an undeniable effect,” Ms. Putin emphasized.^I Nice.

Chinese maneuvers worry

In another case, Minister Jolie said she was “extremely concerned” about recent maneuvers by Chinese aircraft which, according to the Canadian military, would have jeopardized the safety of some of its crews.

Mrs. said.^I Julie, speaking of an “important gesture,” but avoided calling the whole thing offensive.

The incidents reportedly occurred between April 26 and May 26, 2022 as part of monitoring operations to prevent North Korea from circumventing international sanctions.

CAF says that in some cases, patrol planes had to quickly change course to avoid a potential collision.

According to a statement issued by the Confederation of African Football on Wednesday, such “interactions” in international airspace are “increasingly frequent”.