Canada confirms its participation in Crimea Platform summit

"We have received official confirmation that Speaker of the Senate of Canada George Furey will arrive in Kyiv to take part in the Crimea Platform summit and mark the 30th anniversary of Ukraine's independence," Ambassador of Ukraine to Canada Andriy Shevchenko told Ukrinform.

The presence of high-ranking Canadian politicians at the Crimea Platform summit was called into question due to the likely early parliamentary elections in Canada in September as Canada banned participation of politicians running in international events during the election campaign. However, members of the Senate of Canada are not elected by popular vote but are appointed by the decision of the Prime Minister, so senators are not subject to this restriction. After the parliament is dissolved and before a new government is formed, the speaker of the Senate is the highest political position in the country.

The Crimea Platform is a new consultative and coordination format initiated by Ukraine to step up the efficiency of international response to the occupation of Crimea, respond to growing security challenges, increase international pressure on Russia, prevent further human rights violations, protect victims of the occupation regime, and achieve the main goal: to de-occupy Crimea and restore Ukraine’s sovereignty over the peninsula.

The Platform is to operate at several levels: heads of state and government, foreign ministers, inter-parliamentary cooperation, expert network.

The activity of the Crimea Platform will be officially launched at the inaugural summit in Kyiv on August 23, 2021.

The Crimea Platform is expected to be presented at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.

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