OTTAWA — Canada’s foreign minister is telling a United Nations panel inxjmtzyw Europe that Russia lied to the world in the run-up to its invasion of Ukraine.
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly also called on Moscow to respect the rights of Russian people who have taken to the streets to protest their government’s decision to invade Ukraine.
Joly says Russia chose to resort to lies and violence to fabricate an excuse to attack Ukraine.
She delivered the denunciation of President Vladimir Putin today at a meeting of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Joly was in the European city as Russian and Ukrainian delegations met for talks earlier in the day in an attempt to defuse the biggest land conflict on the continent since the Second World War.
Outmatched Ukrainian forces were holding off the onslaught of a land, air and sea attack by Russia as Putin raised the stakes further by placing his country’s nuclear forces on alert.
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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau looks on as Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly speaks during a news conference, in Ottawa, Friday, Feb. 25, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
