President Volodymyr Zelensky called newly elected Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to congratulate him on his surprise victory, and the two discussed sanctions against Russia, air defense for Ukraine, and work at the G7 level. Canada holds the rotating leadership of the Group of Seven highly industrialized nations that used to include Russia in the erstwhile G8. “I have just spoken with Mark Carney, the Prime Minister of Canada. His party has won the elections. I congratulated the Prime Minister on this victory and am confident that our relations with Canada will remain strong. Canada is currently holding the G7 Presidency,” said Zelensky, adding that Ukraine appreciates Canada’s support. Just a month or two ago, Carney’s Liberal Party was widely expected to lose in dramatic fashion to the Conservative Party of Pierre Polliere, as Canadian voters expressed exasperation at former liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. But US President Donald Trump’s aggressive trade war on its northern neighbor this month drastically changed the calculus, and if election campaigns were hockey games, the left-leaning anti-Trump coalition in Ottawa stormed back in an historic, come-from-behind victory late in the third period. Poilievre ended up losing his personal parliamentary seat on Tuesday. “We talked with the Prime Minister about sanctions against Russia and agreed on the necessity of continuing strong sanctions for the war against the aggressor,” Zelensky continued. “We also discussed air defense for Ukraine, diplomacy, and communication with key partners.” The Ukrainian president invited Carney to talks in Kyiv, and went on to discuss sanctions agains Moscow. “We agreed that robust sanctions against Russia remain necessary,” Zelensky added. “We also talked about Ukraine’s air defense, diplomacy, and communication with key partners. I have no doubt that Canada’s leadership in defending international law will continue to be felt.”