Canada on Tuesday announced a new round of sanctions against 15 senior Russian officials and military over the invasion of Ukraine, the same day Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will virtually address the Canadian parliament.

Among the 15 names on the sanctions list are Dmitry Grigorenko, Deputy Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation; Igor Osipov, Admiral in charge of the Black Sea Fleet; Nikolai Yevmenov, Commander-in-Chief of the Navy; and Maxim Reshetnikov, Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation.

Canada said this punishment against officials who “authorized and supported” Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine will put more pressure on Russia to “back down”.

Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly said in a statement that the North American country will not give up its support for Ukraine and its people and that, in the same way that Putin has decided to launch a ” illegal and unjustifiable invasion”, he can end the conflict immediately.

“Canada will not hesitate to take further action if the Russian leadership does not back down,” warned Joly.

Since Russia invaded the Ukrainian territory of Crimea in 2014, Canada has sanctioned more than 900 Russian and Belarusian individuals and entities, more than half since Moscow forces began the invasion of Ukraine on 24 february.

The new round of sanctions comes just hours before Zelensky will deliver a speech via video conference at a special session of Canada’s parliament calling for more help from Western countries.

Canada, home to about 1.5 million people of Ukrainian descent, has been one of the main allies of the Ukrainian authorities since the 2014 revolution toppled the pro-Russian government of Viktor Yanukovych. ECE

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