Natalka Cmok saw so many locals with missing limbs that it reminded her of working in Ukraine in the 1990s, when the newly independent country had thousands of soldiers returning from the Soviet Union's war in Afghanistan.
Her assignment is two-pronged, with a short-term focus on supporting Ukraine's immediate defence and security needs while countering all forms of Russian aggression. That often takes the form of meeting with her peers from G7 countries in Kyiv. But Canada's support for Ukraine goes beyond military help, with a vision for helping to build a greener, more democratic country.
She said Ukraine is getting a sneak peek of its eventual, massive post-war reconstruction in the Kherson region, which was flooded in June by the destruction of a massive dam. She spent a decade in various federal departments in Ottawa, before working as a technical expert in Canada's former aid department in 2011. Her two-year stint focused on human-rights and election-monitoring missions, and she returned to the Ottawa bureaucracy before Ukraine's 2014 democratic revolution.
So far, she said she's been impressed by how unified the war has made Ukrainians, who for decades have been split along linguistic lines and, at times, hostile to minority groups. And she said she's noticed native Russian-speakers making an effort to use Ukrainian.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: globeandmail - 🏆 5. / 92 Read more »
Source: SaltWire Network - 🏆 45. / 63 Read more »
Source: SaltWire Network - 🏆 45. / 63 Read more »
Source: SaltWire Network - 🏆 45. / 63 Read more »
Source: SaltWire Network - 🏆 45. / 63 Read more »
Source: SaltWire Network - 🏆 45. / 63 Read more »