Zelensky urges Canadian parliament to support no-fly zone over Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday addressed Canada’s House of Commons, requesting further assistance in the conflict with Russia and asking that they imagine what it would be like if they were the ones being attacked.

Addressing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Zelensky said, “Dear Justin … can you imagine every day you receive memorandums about the number of casualties including women and children? You heard about the bombings. Currently, we have 97 children that died during this war.”

“Imagine someone taking down your Canadian flags in Montreal and other Canadian cities,” he said. “I know that you all support Ukraine. We’ve been friends with you, Justin, but also I would like you to understand and I would like you to feel this, what we feel every day. We want to live and we want to be victorious.”

Zelensky asked Canada to increase its efforts in supporting Ukraine against the attack and stressed that closing Ukraine’s airspace off from Russian aircrafts was of the utmost importance.

“Can you imagine when you call your friends, your friend, a nation, and you ask, ‘Please close the skies. Close the airspace. Please stop the bombing.’How many more of those missiles have to fall on our cities until you make this happen?” Zelensky asked.

Zelensky’s address was followed by several minutes of applause by the Canadian legislature.

Canadian parliament member Jagmeet Singh spoke after Zelensky’s remarks and acknowledged that it was “unimaginable” to think of such an attack taking place in Canada’s cities.

“Canadians stand with Ukraine and will answer that call to provide as much help as possible in this time,” Singh said. “Canadians want to do more and we heard from President Zelensky that sanctions are important and we want to increase that.”

“We know that Putin does not care. President Putin does not care about his people, he does not care about his country but he does care about his wealth,” added Singh.

The development comes on the same day Russia announced it would be personally sanctioning Trudeau, Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly and Canadian Defense Minister Anita Anand, and other top Canadian officials and lawmakers, barring them from entering the country.

“This step is forced and taken in response to the outrageous hostility of the current Canadian regime, which has tested our patience for so long,” Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement. 

“Every Russophobic attack, be it attacks on Russian diplomatic missions, airspace closures, or Ottawa’s actual severing of bilateral economic ties to the detriment of Canadian interests, will inevitably receive a decisive and not necessarily symmetrical rebuff.”

Caroline Vakil contributed. Updated at 1:20 p.m.