OTTAWA, June 15 (Reuters) – Russia’s foreign ministry said on Thursday it had summoned a Canadian diplomat to Moscow to protest the confiscation of an Antonov plane in Toronto, and warned that Russian-Canadian relations were strained. “in danger” about to be broken”. .
Canada on Saturday ordered the seizure of a Russian-registered Antonov-124 cargo plane at Toronto airport, in its first asset seizure aimed at pressuring Moscow over its invasion of the Ukraine.
Russia told Brian Ebel, deputy head of the Canadian embassy in Moscow, that it considered the seizure of the plane a “cynical theft”, according to a statement from the Foreign Ministry.
“Canada’s Russophobic policy will have the most serious repercussions on Russian-Canadian relations, which are on the verge of breaking down because of the Trudeau government,” the Russian ministry said in a statement.
A Canadian Foreign Ministry spokesperson acknowledged Moscow’s concerns and reiterated Ottawa’s “unwavering” support for the Ukrainians.
“We have been explicitly clear. Those who enabled, supported and profited from Russia’s war in Ukraine will be held accountable,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement.
Canada announced the seizure of the plane while Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was in Kyiv, where he announced $500 million in new military aid to Ukraine.
(Reporting by Ismail Shakil in Ottawa)
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