CANADA CONGRATULATES UKRAINIANS ON THEIR PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

News Release

December 27, 2004 No. 157 Foreign Affairs Minister Pierre Pettigrew and International Cooperation Minister Aileen Carroll today welcomed the preliminary finding that, according to the reports of the Canadian Observers Mission (COM) and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the December 26 round of the Ukrainian presidential election represented a fair expression of the will of the Ukrainian people. “Canadians are encouraged by the high number of Ukrainians who exercised their democratic rights. We look forward to the announcement and confirmation of the winner,” said Minister Pettigrew. “This election offered an opportunity for more Canadians to get involved in world affairs and to help the cause of democracy. We are proud that this first Canada Corps initiative was such a success.” “This election provided an ideal opportunity for Canada Corps to call upon a wide range of qualified Canadian volunteers who wanted to help the people of Ukraine make their votes count,” said Minister Carroll. “I would like to congratulate the Right Honourable John Turner, Head of the Canadian Delegation, and the members of the delegation on the very important task they undertook. I would also like to thank them for their sacrifice at this special time of year. This is the perfect reflection of Canadians’ belief in democracy and in giving each and every individual a voice in the future of their country.” Canada sent its largest election observer delegation ever to the Ukrainian presidential runoff vote, drawing from volunteers who were selected from over 4,000 applications received by CANADEM, a Canadian non-governmental organization specializing in the selection and provision of election observers worldwide. This mission represents the inaugural project for Canada Corps, an important Canadian International Development Agency initiative aimed at sending Canadian experts to areas of the world where they can make a contribution. This has been an example of how Canada Corps can channel Canadian expertise in good governance and institution building to support the building of democracy. Having completed their responsibilities as election monitors, members of the OSCE and COM groups are expected to return to Canada by December 30. The preliminary report of the Canadian Observers Mission is available at http://www.canadobserv.org. - 30 - For further information, media representatives may contact: Sébastien Théberge Director of Communications Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs (613) 995-1851 Media Relations Office Foreign Affairs Canada and International Trade Canada (613) 995-1874 http://www.international.gc.ca Andrew Graham Director of Communications Office of the Minister of International Cooperation (819) 953-6238 Media Relations Office Canadian International Development Agency (819) 953-6534 info@acdi-cida.gc.ca

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2016-12-15

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CANADA CONGRATULATES UKRAINIANS ON THEIR PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

News Release

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