Foreign Minister Melanie Joly. The Liberal government faced accusations Thursday that it was fueling Vladimir Putin’s war machine by returning pipeline equipment to Montreal for repairs at a Russian energy giant. Ukraine’s ambassador and conservative critics have argued that Canada’s decision to return the turbine means more funds will flow to Russia’s state-controlled Gazprom and in turn allow the country’s president to buy more weapons to attack Ukraine. The accusations came during heated exchanges at a parliamentary committee meeting where Foreign Secretary Melanie Jolie and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson gave evidence about the decision to return the equipment. Last month, the Liberal government was criticized for granting Siemens Energy an exemption from sanctions against Russia and returning the turbine for installation on the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which carries natural gas to Germany. The license allows Siemens to import, repair and return up to six turbines for Gazprom. Ukraine’s ambassador Yulia Kovaliv called on Canada to reconsider its decision on the other five wind turbines, which she said could lead to more financial support for the Russian military. Kovaliv said Ukraine is grateful to Canada for its steadfast support since Russia’s invasion, but said its decision to waive its sanctions regime to allow the turbine’s return has set a dangerous precedent and has already strengthened Moscow’s sense of impunity. The ambassador said the decision marked a slippery slope and allowed Russia to weaponize energy while giving Putin “grounds for further blackmail”. He said Canada repairing and returning additional turbines would be “turned by Russia into tools of humiliation and there is no reason to take the bait.” He warned against appeasing Putin’s “energy blackmail” and called on Canada to revoke the permit, adding that natural gas could flow to the EU through a pipeline in Ukraine. Speaking after the meeting, Kovaliv denied that Putin had managed to divide pro-Ukraine allies over the turbine issue and said they remained “united”. German Ambassador Sabine Sparwasser said it was only after much soul-searching that Germany asked Canada to lift sanctions to return the turbine being repaired to Montreal. She said her country was very grateful to Canada for doing so. The turbine was originally sent to Germany and was supposed to eventually go to Russia, but it remains in Sparwasser’s country. He said Putin is using it as an excuse to cut gas supplies and Russia doesn’t want to take it even though it is in excellent condition. Russia has since reduced the pipeline’s flow to 20 percent of capacity. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov claimed that Gazprom needs documents from Siemens Energy proving that the equipment is not subject to Western sanctions before it can be returned to Russia. Asked during the hearing whether Canada would have to cancel the permit for the other five turbines if Russia did not receive the repaired one, the ambassador said: “We’ll see what happens.” He said Germany did not want to fall into Putin’s “trap” and was working hard to reduce its reliance on Russian gas to heat homes, including looking to Canada for liquefied natural gas and green hydrogen as energy sources in the future . The EU’s ambassador to Canada, Melita Gabric, accused Russia of using energy supplies as a “weapon” against EU states. Germany cut its dependence on Russian gas from 55 percent to 26 percent, and had fuel reserves for next winter, he said. Conservative MP James Bezan told the committee that Canada had been “outmaneuvered by the Russian Federation.” He said it looked like Putin was playing chess while Canada was playing checkers and accused the Liberal government of “bolstering” Gazprom, which would give Russia more funds to buy weapons to kill Ukrainians. “It’s shameful that the government of Canada has capitulated,” he said. Alexandra Chyczij, of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, told MPs the decision to return the turbines was “the tip of the wedge” and the first lifting of sanctions since Russia invaded Ukraine in February. He warned that “appeasing dictators” never works and only “emboldens them”. But Foreign Minister Melanie Jolie denied Canada was capitulating and insisted she was probably calling Putin’s bluff. He said the return of the turbine denied Putin a pretext to reduce the flow of natural gas through the pipeline. Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson echoed that sentiment and said exposing Putin’s dishonesty was always the reason for the decision. Germany’s ambassador also said that calling Putin’s bluff was one of the reasons behind the decision, as well as a desire to “test” whether returning the turbine would increase gas flows from Russia. But Tory MP Marty Morands noted that the Liberal government did not use that language when the decision was first made. He disputed when he decided the reasoning was about calling Putin’s bluff, rather than securing gas supplies to Europe. The Conservatives also questioned whether the alternative of sending natural gas through pipelines through Ukraine had been actively explored by the government. Wilkinson said the option had been considered in detail but was not considered viable, mainly because Ukraine’s pipelines ran through a war zone. He added that Canada is working closely with European nations to help wean them off their dependence on Russian energy to heat their homes, including by planning to supply natural gas from Canada. Both Wilkinson and Jolie said the decision was made after extensive consultation, including with Ukraine, and was difficult. Wilkinson said the sanctions imposed after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine were intended to punish Putin, not Canada’s allies in Europe. Joly said the government is committed to continuing sanctions to pressure Putin and plans new rounds every two weeks.