Good evening, readers!

Canada and Ukraine’s other allies in the “coalition of the willing” signed a statement today pledging help to secure Ukraine from further Russian invasions if there is a viable peace deal.

Prime Minister Mark Carney wrapped up a brief trip to Paris Tuesday by promising Canada’s support for Ukraine alongside more than 30 countries in the coalition.

The proposed security agreement would see a multinational force of troops sent to aid Ukraine after a ceasefire takes place, and offers a promise to support the war-torn country if Russia invades again.

While that effort would be led by Europe, the agreement says non-European members would also contribute alongside proposed support from the United States.

Carney told reporters earlier in the day that while his government’s push to build up the military will help Canada play a role in securing Ukraine after the war, putting Canadian troops on the ground is just a “possibility” at this stage.

The Canadian Press explains.

Carney also said Tuesday that Chrystia Freeland’s upcoming resignation from the House of Commons is “consistent” with taking a role as an unpaid economic development adviser for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

“My judgment was that taking that role would be consistent with resigning as an MP, and I welcomed her doing that,” Carney said during a press conference at the Canadian Embassy in Paris.

Freeland announced her plans to resign from the House in the “coming weeks” on Monday, hours after news broke of her advisor appointment, which had drawn criticism from opposition parties and an ethics watchdog.

She had already previously said she would not run in the next election, and will become CEO of the Rhodes Trust, a global educational charity in Oxford, England, starting on July 1.

A source close to Freeland told iPolitics she needs some time to prepare for the transition out of her seat as an MP, and “things went very quickly” when it came to accepting the offer to serve as an advisor to Ukraine.

Marco Vigliotti explains.

Also at his press conference on Tuesday, Carney says his government is working to expand access to oil markets in Asia now that Canada faces the prospect of Venezuelan oil displacing Canadian product in the American market.

His remarks came after Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre urged Carney to “immediately approve a pipeline to the Pacific Coast” in an letter shared on social media Tuesday morning.

During a media availability, Carney was asked if U.S. President Donald Trump’s push to take control of Venezuela’s oil industry heightens the need for a pipeline to B.C.’s northwest coast.

“We welcome the prospects of greater prosperity in Venezuela. But we also see the competitiveness of Canadian oil,” Carney said.

“And in that context, a pipeline and exports to Asia, we’ve got competitive product, and we’d be diversifying our markets, and that’s one of the reasons why we signed the comprehensive MOU with Alberta. So we’d be working toward that.”

CP has this one too.

In Other Headlines

Internationally

Reuters is reporting that government officials in Caracas and Washington are discussing exporting Venezuelan crude to refiners in the United States, five government.

The outlet, citing industry and shipping sources, said a deal that could divert supplies away from China while helping state company PDVSA avoid deeper output cuts.

Meanwhile, Russia on Tuesday welcomed the appointment of Delcy Rodriguez as Venezuela’s interim president, calling it a step to ensure peace and stability in the face of “blatant neocolonial threats and foreign armed aggression”.

“We firmly insist that Venezuela must be guaranteed the right to determine its own destiny without any destructive external interference,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

It did not refer by name to the United States. President Donald Trump on Saturday sent special forces to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and bring him to the U.S., where he has pleaded not guilty to narcotics charges and insisted he remains the rightful leader of the country.

“We welcome the efforts undertaken by the official authorities of this country to protect state sovereignty and national interests. We reaffirm Russia’s unwavering solidarity with the Venezuelan people and government,” the Russian statement said, adding that Moscow would continue to provide “necessary support”.

Reuters has this one too.

And finally, Ukraine’s allies said they made major progress Tuesday toward agreeing how to defend the country if a peace deal is struck with Russia, saying they were ready to provide international guarantees to deter Moscow from attacking its neighbour again.

Plans discussed at a key meeting in Paris included having the U.S. lead an effort to monitor any ceasefire — which could give Washington a direct role in keeping any peace with Russia.

Leaders from 27 European countries and Canada, as well as U.S. representatives and top officials from the European Union and NATO, said they would provide Kyiv’s front-line forces with equipment and training and back them up with air, land and sea support to deter any future Russian attack.

AP reports.

In Other International Headlines

The Kicker

Brad Marchand loves stirring the pot.

The Florida Panthers star stole the show when he met with the Toronto media Tuesday morning, admitting he considered joining the Maple Leafs as a free agent.

“It was between Florida and Toronto where I was going to go,” Marchand told reporters.

“I never thought it was going to be possible to re-sign with Florida, I really didn’t. Just with the guys we had up and stuff like that. But once the opportunity came up to sign here, it was kind of no question that’s where I wanted to be. But just with where we were [with the salary cap], I didn’t think it was going to be able to happen.

TSN has this one, and the Toronto Maple Leafs host the Panthers tonight.