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A volunteer sorts a box of medication as part of donations destined to Ukraine, at the St. Michael's Ukrainian Catholic Church in Montreal, on March 3.Paul Chiasson/The Canadian Press

The Russian invasion of Ukraine means Canada has to make big changes to foreign aid, defence spending and immigration plans.

Foreign aid: Traditional Canadian aid is about building infrastructure and institutions in developing countries. When the war is over, Ukraine is certainly going to need much assistance. But that’s conditional on the survival of an independent Ukraine. And in any case, we can’t start talking about rebuilding Ukraine until Russia stops knocking it down.

To remain independent, and stop the knocking down, Ukraine needs weapons. In particular, weapons to counterbalance Russian armour on the ground and jets in the sky.

The Trudeau government’s decision to start sending lethal aid is the right one. Until last week, Canada was only offering “defensive” kits, such as body armour. Body armour is about as effective at stopping a tank as strong language.

Late last week, Canada announced more: 100 shoulder-fired Carl-Gustaf anti-tank weapons, drawn from Canadian Armed Forces stocks, and 2,000 rounds of ammunition. On Thursday, Canada promised 4,500 M72 rocket launchers, which are similar to the Carl-Gustaf, and 7,500 hand grenades, all drawn from Canada’s (limited) supplies.

Other NATO countries are doing likewise. These weapons are comparable to what Ukrainian troops use, and have already used to great effect. They also call for minimal training, which means they can be used by civilian volunteers.

Defence spending: Last week, Russian aggression changed everything in Germany. The country, which has been whittling away at its armed forces for decades, announced an abrupt U-turn. Germany will from now on spend at least 2 per cent of GDP a year on national defence – an immediate spending increase of nearly a third.

The need for a credible NATO deterrent means that Canada must follow Germany’s lead. For years, NATO laggards like Canada have promised to get defence spending up to 2 per cent of GDP. Canada remains among NATO’s lowest spenders, at just 1.39 per cent of GDP in 2021.

Immigration: Unless by some miracle the war ends soon, a flood of refugees is coming. As of Thursday morning, the United Nations estimated that a million Ukrainians had left the country. The UN says as many as four million may leave – though if this war is anywhere near as destructive as in Chechnya or Syria, that is likely to be an underestimate.

In response, Canada must be generous and smart.

The Trudeau government said on Thursday that it will create a new visa category, allowing an unlimited number of Ukrainians to come to Canada to live, work or study for a period of up to two years. The government said it will also create an expedited immigration process for Ukrainians fleeing the country, and who have family in Canada.

Some have urged the government to simply drop the visa requirement and allow anyone from Ukraine to buy a plane ticket to Canada, no questions asked. That would be a mistake. The government says it worries about nefarious actors, including people who fought in pro-Russian militias, taking advantage of a zero-security approach. It’s right to worry.

Canada only allows visa-free travel for people from a limited number of countries where the risk of a vacationer choosing to overstay is low. But this program is not about Ukrainians holidaying in Canada – obviously not. It is about allowing people who are basically refugees to come to Canada for two years, after which, depending on the situation back home, many will surely apply to become refugee claimants or immigrants.

Canada always vets people before allowing them to relocate, temporarily or permanently, from overseas. There’s no reason to abandon that approach here.

In terms of immigration and refugee application made directly from Europe, Canada can and should welcome a large number of Ukrainians in the months to come. It’s a chance to make some lemonade, for Canada and Ukrainians, out of this lemon of a situation. However, given Canada’s housing crisis, and already high immigration levels, a big jump in immigrants from Ukraine should be counterbalanced by a temporary lowering of arrivals from other sources.

Canada should also do everything it can to entice the most educated and skilled Ukrainian exiles to choose our country. That would be good for us, and for them. More on all of this, next week.

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