In troubled times, we cling to symbols.
This is the strategy that the Trudeau government seems to have adopted at the start of its European diplomatic tour.
She has produced little concrete so far, even after a meeting with a large handful of heads of government and the head of NATO.
Even next to them, Canada seems to be doing very little, especially from the point of view of increasing military spending. On this subject which seems taboo to him, Justin Trudeau remains lukewarm.
excitement in the air
This tour is primarily a demonstration of strength and unity against Vladimir Putin.
In Latvia, the Canadian presence and that of NATO are noticed.
Among the troops, we are happy to receive this moral support in person.
“It’s nice to have a visit like that,” says Prime Minister Trudeau Frédéric Tremblay, a soldier from Quebec posted at the Ādaži base since December.
Photo Guillaume St-Pierre
Frédéric Tremblay and William Lebel, from the greater Quebec City region, say they are ready for battle.
With his feet planted in the thick ocher sand, the 30-year-old Quebecer serves his weapon by posing in front of trucks and tanks.
Her family worries over text from across the Atlantic, but she accepts her role.
“Of course we reassure our loved ones, but for the moment, things are not moving too much,” he said, referring to the Russian threat.
prefer to die
You have to get out of the military base to observe all the “febrility” that is felt in the face of the armed conflict that is being played out in Europe.
“We in Canada don’t really see the threat because we’re far away,” believes William Lebel, a 28-year-old corporal who grew up in Lévis. But they live with it. It really feels. »
In the streets of Latvia’s capital, Riga, about 30 kilometers from the base, the invasion of Ukraine is reigniting fears that were thought to be history.
“I am deeply sad, angry, I have difficulty expressing this horrible cocktail of emotions in my heart, in my head, about the situation in Ukraine”, drops Iveta Mielava in the middle of her music store .
Photo Guillaume St-Pierre
Iveta Mielava, owner of a small music shop in Riga, capital of Latvia, has bad memories of the time when her country lived under the yoke of the Soviet empire.
“It’s the war next door, it’s our neighbours. »
A short four-hour drive separates Riga from the Russian border. The small country of less than 2 million inhabitants lived under Soviet rule until 1991.
Iveta remembers that time, and for nothing in the world would she want to go back there.
“I would rather die,” the 61-year-old artist told me.
“We had no freedom. We couldn’t say anything, go anywhere. »
One for all! All for one
It is in Latvia that Canada has its largest contingent deployed abroad. Some 550 Canadian soldiers lead the NATO troops, with a promise to mobilize up to nearly 1,000 in total.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg firmly reiterated yesterday that the principle of “one for all, all for one” will be respected in the event of Russian aggression.
“We are quite well prepared, both mentally and physically”, in the event of a conflict, promises Master Corporal Frédéric Tremblay.
Are we ever really prepared for such an eventuality?
The presence of NATO soldiers is reassuring in Riga.
Above all, Iveta wants the West to see Putin’s Russia “for what it is”.
“I think Western diplomats and governments are naïve. »
“Russia is not that strong. Above all, she is proud. »
Reference-www.journaldemontreal.com