The Canadian government says it is sending up to 225 troops to help train Ukrainian army recruits for war with Russia, an escalation of Ottawa’s commitment even as a row with Kyiv over repairing Russian turbines was on full display on Parliament Hill on Thursday. Defense Minister Anita Anand announced the training mission – which will take place in the UK – hours before a parliamentary committee convened to hear testimony about Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s decision in July to bypass sanctions and allow the entry, repair and re-export of Russian turbines while Moscow is still at war with Ukraine. Ms. Anand said the deployment is a continuation of the Canadian Forces’ Operation UNIFIER mission that has been providing soldier instruction to Ukrainian soldiers since 2015. The mission was suspended after Russia’s military attack on Ukraine on Feb. 24, but the Canadian government provided additional funding for continuing it in the 2022 budget. In this UNIFIER mission, Canada is training Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers heading into a conflict where casualties are high on both sides. Director of the Central Intelligence Agency William Burns said last month that the US estimated about 15,000 Russians had been killed and perhaps 45,000 wounded. Ukraine expresses ‘deep disappointment’ as Canada sends six Russian turbines back to Germany David Perry, president of the Canadian Institute of Global Affairs, said the new UNIFIER deployment deepens Ottawa’s commitment. “It is escalating our involvement, but commensurate with the conflict, which the Russians massively escalated on February 24,” he said. About 90 Canadian soldiers from the Edmonton-based 3rd Battalion Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry will head to southeast England next week. They will teach frontline combat including weapons handling, battlefield first aid, field and patrol tactics. Ukraine opposes Mr Trudeau’s decision to allow the import, repair and export of the turbines. The German government persuaded him to do this after Moscow said gas shipments to Germany were significantly reduced because a turbine is stuck in Montreal. Germany is facing an energy crisis and the decision has been supported by the United States, among others, although Ukraine says it is easing sanctions. Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson told the House of Commons foreign affairs committee it was important to avoid a trap set by Russian President Vladimir Putin to divide allies. The turbine is one of several Nord Stream 1 pipelines, majority-owned by Kremlin-controlled gas producer Gazprom, which it uses to compress natural gas as it flows from Russia under the Baltic Sea to Germany. It is operating at 20 percent capacity. About 25 percent of Germany’s energy supplies come from natural gas, but the country is taking steps to reduce its dependence on Russian oil. Russia cut gas shipments in June, blaming missing turbines. The equipment was maintained by Siemens Energy in Montreal, but was stuck there because of the sanctions. Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly told the committee that Germany had pleaded with Canada to agree that the turbine could be returned, saying it would remove Russia’s pretext for cutting gas shipments. Yulia Kovalev, Ukraine’s ambassador to Canada, said it has been clear for some time that Moscow is using energy as a weapon. The first Nord Stream 1 turbine freed from Canadian export controls is now in Germany. Russia has put up roadblocks to its return – prompting critics in Canada to question why Ottawa released it. “There was no need to waive sanctions to call Putin’s bluff,” Ms Kovalev told lawmakers. “You could just Google it: the logic of appeasement has already failed to prevent this war.” The agreement would allow the import, repair and re-export of five more Russian turbines. Ms. Kovaliv urged Ottawa to rescind the permit. “If the reason for the resignation was not to allow Russia to blame the sanctions for the gas cut, it is now clear that [the] an additional five turbines … will be converted by Russia into additional tools of humiliation,” he said. “We urge you: Don’t take the bait.” Sabine Sparwasser, Germany’s ambassador to Canada, told the committee that Berlin was grateful that Canada had released the turbines. “Sanctions are a very blunt tool,” he said. “When states impose economic costs on another country, they often cause unintended consequences for third parties.” He said the exemptions allow countries to tighten sanctions regimes. The German envoy noted that the European Union recently waived some sanctions to help open up Ukraine’s food exports and “remove Russia’s pretense that Western sanctions are responsible for the global food crisis.” Alexandra Chyczij, president of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, which represents Canadians of Ukrainian descent, told MPs that the destruction and death in Russia’s war against Ukraine “is horror on a scale not seen in Europe since” the Second World War. He said it was “absolutely clear that Russia engineered the Nord Stream 1 incident to test the resolve” of Canada and its allies. “So far, we have failed that test.” Mr. Wilkinson was asked why Canada has not built up liquefied natural gas export capacity so that country could help Germany wean itself off Russian oil. He said proponents of LNG export projects on Canada’s east coast have not made final investment decisions. “The private sector needs to bring capital to the table to make sure they can actually get this up and running.” The Morning Update and Afternoon Update newsletters are written by Globe editors, giving you a concise summary of the day’s most important headlines. Sign up today.