Zelensky's Urgent Message

In addressing Canada's Parliament, the Ukrainian president reveals a painful disconnect

Ukraine’s President just addressed US Congress, yesterday he spoke directly to Canada’s Parliament in what is a major effort to gain direct support for his embattled nation.

On the face of it, this was to be a solemn and moving moment, with a full House of Commons with the necessary touches of blue and yellow here and there. At the same time it was a total surreal setting with nicely dressed parliamentarians in comfortable surroundings, where the Ukrainian leader sat in a besieged city, unshaven and dressed in the same military gear he’s been wearing for weeks. This was a point not lost on Zelensky himself, who through his speech kept bringing back the analogy of what Canadians would think if Vancouver or Montreal were under attack, or if they could even try to feel the raw emotions of war:

“Justin, can you imagine you and your children hearing all these severe explosions, the bombing of the airport, the bombing of the Ottawa airport?” Zelensky said. “Cruise missiles are falling down and your children are asking you ‘What happened?’”

"Dear Justin and dear guests, can you imagine that every day you receive memorandums about the number of casualties, including women and children? I would like you to understand and I would like you to feel what we feel every day"

It was hard not to see the wide gap between the anguished speaker and his somewhat impotent audience as Canada is not doing nearly enough to help prevent the slaughter on the ground in Ukraine. The efforts are limited to sanctions, selective weapon deliveries and of course generous humanitarian aid, but the real need, the one thing Zelensky desperately needs, an air shield from Russian aggression, is not on the table. Yes, NATO, political constraints, whatever, the speech was not really going to move the dial in Ottawa yesterday. But not to worry, there are deep reservoirs of support for Ukraine. Trudeau in his introduction to the president suggested that in Canada “we root for the underdog” offering up words where action is relatively thin. The prime minister was making it sound as if this was some sort of sports game or pub brawl where we give our thumbs up to the weaker one and say: “go for it buddy, you are almost there ! ” It brings us to the point of what this war has been so far: a distant show, consumed on TV and on Twitter, we watch it and take it in, wire a bit of money, hope for the best and carry on. That is what this feels like and for a fleeting moment I almost was embarrassed for the hollow words, staring at the screen where a guy is counting bodybags and all he can really get is a round of applause for his hard work.

Sure this is a somewhat negative take on the affair, and a more enlightened reading of yesterday’s proceedings will point to a carefully orchestrated political game. Zelensky is addressing leaders and legislators all around the world because he needs broad based support to force real action from western governments. The only way to do that is to continuously lobby and pressure, and addressing elected officials directly in a dramatic setting is part of what Ukraine needs to do to change minds. It will be quite interesting to see how this plays out in Washington as Biden is getting the same ‘little substance’ label that Trudeau and other leaders have been getting. The pressure for more direct support and action is building up and leaders - like Trudeau - will need more than just political will, they will need broad-based support to embark on a potentially dangerous course of action. Speeches, rallies, influencing, back-channelling for weeks on end while galvanizing public sentiment and the press are the ingredients required. Next week there will be a NATO summit in Europe with both Biden and Trudeau attending so expect more noise and diplomatic maneuvering in the lead up to that meeting.

There you have it. An emotional call for help to underline how inadequate the efforts for real support have been so far. At the same time the speech may be laying the groundwork for more direct and consequential action from Canada, the US, and indeed from most democracies. Russia is being boxed in step by step, but it is not going nearly fast enough for Ukrainians on the ground.

And one last thing on Canada. It does not feel that leadership on the war in Ukraine is coming from Trudeau or his Foreign Minster, Mélanie Joly. It is actually Canada’s Ambassador to the UN, Bob Rae who is the voice and he says it like it is. He may also not be providing the instant relief for Ukraine, but at least he is frank, honest and direct when discussing Russia, Ukraine and indeed China’s role in it all. Watch him. He gets it.

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