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'Russian threat' moves to the Arctic, Canadian Foreign Minister warns

"The Russian threat is moving further and further north towards the Arctic Circle. We need to be prepared at all times across various domains", Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister, Anita Anand, said in an interview with Euronews, referring to the purchase of 12 submarines.

READ MORE : http://www.euronews.com/2026/07/08/russian-threat-moves-to-the-arctic-canadian-foreign-minister-warns

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Transcript
00:00Moving on to Ankara where NATO leaders are meeting for their second day of talks after US President
00:05Donald Trump reignited the confrontation over Greenland and lashed out at other allies over
00:11Iran. For more we can go straight over to Ankara and bring in our NATO correspondent Shona Murray.
00:16Good morning Shona. So look Donald Trump arrived yesterday and almost straight away berated his
00:20allies. Tell us more. Well good morning Maeve. That's right I mean even the most seasoned NATO
00:27diplomats have been saying for the past few weeks that this summit would be straightforward that it
00:32would pass off without instance because of the numbers being pledged and spent on defense 50
00:38billion dollars yesterday at the NATO defense industry forum. But the idea was that so Donald
00:44Trump would be placated by that but of course he had other plans. The first moment he basically
00:49touched down here in Ankara he lambasted allies over not helping him in the war in Iran and then as
00:54you
00:54said he reignited that confrontation with Denmark over the use of the over the US trying to control
01:00Greenland. Take a listen. Greenland doesn't help Denmark. Denmark doesn't spend money to really help
01:09Greenland but it's an important part for the United States and it's surrounded by China ships and Russian
01:17ships and that's not going to happen. The ships is it's not going to happen. It was Greenland that in
01:23my and it
01:24continues to be that should be controlled by the United States not by Denmark. Now the Prime Minister
01:31of Denmark obviously responded saying Greenland is not for sale but it's obviously tarnished somewhat
01:36this summit. Then moreover overnight Maeve we know that the United States launched strikes against Iran
01:41in command and control centers. So there's a real concern that that might overshadow today's
01:46proceedings which of course we're supposed to be talking about Ukraine, the war in Ukraine and also the
01:51defense of the European continent. Of course Donald Trump is due to meet Vladimir Zelensky, the Ukrainian
01:56president today this afternoon around 2.30. But still you know it's not really as straightforward as
02:01NATO allies had hoped. Maeve? Hearing some big announcements coming out of that summit there on spending, Shona.
02:08Did that not please President Donald Trump?
02:12Well certainly there was. I mean $50 billion on tanks, submarines, Patriot systems, interceptors and of course about
02:19$10 to $20 billion on drones, anti-drone technology which is obviously important for modern warfare. So the idea was
02:26that that would settle you know Donald Trump's claims that Canada and Europe have fallen behind over the past few
02:33decades when it comes to defense spending. But I sat down with the Foreign Affairs Minister of Canada,
02:38Anita Anand and I asked her about Canada's pledges.
02:42We see the Russian threat moving further and further north towards the Arctic Circle and we therefore need
02:50to be at all times prepared across various domains. 40% of Canada's land mass is in the Arctic, 70
03:01% of our
03:02coastline is in the Arctic. These submarines make sense from a threat perspective, from a geopolitical perspective, but also in
03:15terms of
03:15ensuring that we are scaling up in areas that will defend and protect the homeland.
03:23Do you think the issue with Greenland and Donald Trump is over now? Do you think that's settled?
03:27Canada stands with Denmark and Greenland. We in fact opened a consulate in Greenland in early February.
03:36And so I'll be meeting with the Foreign Minister of Denmark today. I'm sure we will discuss the importance of
03:44continuing to uphold the support for territorial integrity and state sovereignty. And as for future
03:53predictions, very difficult to say, but all that for Canada means that we are fundamentally supporters
04:03of international law and of multilateralism, including the principle of state sovereignty and territorial integrity.
04:11How important is it that Canada is working with Germany and Norway?
04:14That's very much the focus of Canada's foreign policy and our work to ensure that we're not only focused on
04:24the Arctic,
04:24but also NATO's eastern flank, where our largest military operation is Operation Reassurance in Latvia,
04:32where we lead the multinational brigade group and will do so at least until 2029.
04:40Do you think that Ukraine has turned the tide somewhat on the war in Ukraine, the Russian invasion of Ukraine?
04:46I do. I will say that there is every reason to see Ukraine as having the capability,
04:58the expertise and the know-how on the battlefield to fight and win this war.
05:04Countries around the world are seeking out the expertise of the Ukrainian armed forces and President Zelensky's overall strategy in
05:14the war.
05:15Always keeping in mind the importance of territorial integrity and state sovereignty, again, of Ukraine.
05:22The Donbass area, this is Ukrainian territory.
05:26Crimea, this is Ukrainian territory.
05:30We must never forget that.
05:31Do you think it's going to come back, Crimea?
05:33I do. And I will say Ukraine is going to win this war.
05:40And then just final question, Minister, as a woman, because we saw this picture that Donald Trump posted by Georgia
05:47Maloney,
05:48who's going to be at this summit today saying there should be a restraining order.
05:52And they used to be close friends. Obviously, they've fallen out.
05:54Well, of course, Canada's approach to diplomacy is very much about the policy initiatives that we are undertaking with many
06:04countries, Italy included.
06:06You mentioned our relationship with Europe earlier in the interview.
06:13I'll just say, of course, this is a time where, from a Canadian perspective, we are encouraging women to run
06:22for public office and to seek leadership positions.
06:27We are going to be close friends.
06:27We are going to be close friends.
06:28We are going to be close friends.
06:28We are going to be close friends.
06:29We are going to be close friends.
06:29We are going to be close friends.
06:29We are going to be close friends.
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