Minister defends Canadian navy ship's visit to Cuba with Russian vessels in port [View all]
Canadian ship sent to Cuba to demonstrate naval capability, commitment to open waters, Bill Blair says
Peter Zimonjic · CBC News · Posted: Jun 17, 2024 12:18 PM CDT | Last Updated: 9 hours ago
People watch the Russian Navy Admiral Gorshkov frigate arrive at the port of Havana, Cuba on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. (Ariel Ley/The Associated Press)
The decision to send a Canadian naval vessel into the port of Havana to sit alongside Russian warships this week was approved by Defence Minister Bill Blair following a request from the Canadian military, the minister said Monday.
"This was a direct result of a request that was made to me by the commander of joint operations command and the admiral in charge of the Royal Canadian Navy," Blair said.
"The port visit was carefully planned at Canada's request and it was announced by the military in advance."
Blair said Monday that the Harry DeWolf-class offshore patrol vessel HMCS Margaret Brooke, which arrived in Havana on Friday, heads back to Canadian waters Monday.
More:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/bill-blair-defence-minister-havana-1.7237261
= new reply since forum marked as read