Opinion piece by Bob rae, Fellow of Massey College, the Munk School at the University of Toronto, the Forum of Federations and Queen’s University. He served as Ontario’s 21st Premier, interim leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, and Canada’s Ambassador to the UN.

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In coming to the defence of Ukraine’s, Denmark’s Greenland’s and yes, Venezuela’s, sovereignty, we are defending our own. Imperial habits die hard. And Canada must be at the centre of these battles because our existence as a nation at stake.

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The decision by the Trump administration to launch an arrest operation in Caracas, Venezuela, capturing Nicolás Maduro and his spouse Cilia Flores, has profound consequences for all of us.

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The revelation that the United States would be “running Venezuela”, taking over the oil industry, replacing “free and fair elections” with a “judicious…very judicious transition”, … outlined in the recent U.S. National Security Strategy was the most expansive expression of American hegemony in the Western Hemisphere and beyond in decades.

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The meetings in Paris this week of the Coalition of the Willing supporting Ukraine take on a whole new meaning and significance. The U.S. release of the National Security Strategy one month ago, the subsequent military buildup and invasion of Caracas, the collateral rhetoric about Cuba, Colombia, Mexico, Greenland, Canada — all point a revival of Great Power unilateralism at the expense of everyone else.

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In the time leading up to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, [Russian] President Putin released speeches and documents explaining the Russian grievance.

The Putin Doctrine is fundamentally this: Greater Russia has included Ukraine for centuries … Ukrainian nationalism is a fake concept promoted by Russia’s enemies … The decision to grant Ukraine independence in 1991 was a betrayal, aggravated by NATO “aggression” … Putin further claimed that Ukraine was committing a “genocide” against Russian speakers in Ukraine, and that therefore Russia’s invasion in February 2022 was fully justified as self-defence.

It is worth noting that these arguments were all heard, considered, and dismissed as having no merit by the International Court of Justice.

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The third member of the P3, China, has its own narrative and explanation to justify its treatment of Tibetans and Uyghurs, among other minorities, its claim to Taiwan, and its status as a “Great Civilization”, giving it power and status above and beyond others.

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Ukraine’s fate is ours. If the Coalition of the Willing cannot find the means and the will to defend Ukraine’s interests, the message to Russia, China, the United States and others would be clear: your region is your playground, and any casus belli — no matter how ludicrous — will do.

As Canadians, our interests, values, and nationhood are directly at stake. This is not an exaggeration. Prime Minister Mark Carney’s plan for greater national solidarity, aggressive search for new markets, and a sustained effort to reach a new CUSMA agreement all make good sense, but all of us need to recognize the costs and consequences of the lawless world we are now in.

It can’t be business or politics as usual.

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