Russiaâs Ambassador to Canada Oleg Stepanov says the threat of Western sanctions in response to a military buildup along the Ukraine border carries no weight.
In an interview on ŰÎŰ´ŤĂ˝ Channelâs Power Play with host Evan Solomon on Thursday, Stepanov said the possibility of new sanctions wouldnât influence the countryâs future actions.
âSanctions never work and sanctions never will be able to work against such countries, such [a] nation as Russia. The attempts to use sanctions as a threat in order to make Russia do certain steps on the international area is just an illusion,â he said.
âActually, in Russia, and the Russian government, and I can tell you frankly, nobody cares about Western sanctions anymoreâŚbecause they donât work and they donât bite, they donât inflict any real influence or any practical outcome.â
Canada, as well as other NATO allies, have stressed that any further incursion by Russian troops into Ukraine would lead to âserious consequencesâ and sanctions.
The Canadian government has been unclear as to what those sanctions would look like.
Global Affairs reports that Canada has targeted more than 440 individuals and entities related to Russia dating back to 2014 when its military forcibly annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula.
The U.S. Treasury Department levied new sanctions Thursday against four Ukrainian officials, including two current members of parliament who administration officials say are part of a Russian influence effort to set the pretext for further invasion of Ukraine.
Stepanov said Russia has âno desireâ to invade Ukraine, adding that the amassing of some 100,000 troops along the border is part of âregular exercisesâ on its own territory.
âRussia can do anything on its own territory and of course we would never move our troops in our territory at the behest of foreign countries,â he said.
U.S. President Joe Biden told reporters on Wednesday that while he doesnât believe Russian President Vladimir Putin has made a final decision about a full-scale attack, he said "my guess is he will move in."
The U.S. and the U.K. have started sending weapons to Ukraine for self-defence purposes, following up on one of the countryâs key asks to NATO.
While in Ukraine this week, Canadaâs Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said Canada would make a decision about whether to send weapons in a âtimely manner.â
As part of Operation UNIFIER, Canada sends a group of about 200 Canadian Armed Forces members to Ukraine every six months. The operationâs focus is to assist with training in coordination with the U.S. and other countries that provide that level of support.
On the mission, Stepanov said Russia has âmany concernsâ about it, but itâs a âsovereign decisionâ by Canada.
Retired Canadian Maj.-Gen. David Fraser, a former commander of NATO troops in Afghanistan, refuted Stepanovâs claims that sanctions donât work in a later interview on ŰÎŰ´ŤĂ˝ Channelâs Power Play.
âIf you look at history, sanctions actually do work. Look what theyâve done to Iran and letâs not forget that the Russian economy of $1.3 trillion GDP â Texas has a bigger economy, Canada has a bigger economy, so sanctions will work against Russia,â he said.
Fraser said this is a political problem that requires a political solution.
âThereâs nothing we can do militarilyâŚwe do matter on the political side of the house and weâve got to find a political solution to this and this is where sanctions [come in],â he said.
With a file from The Canadian Press and The Associated Press.