OTTAWA – Nearly a year ago, more than 800 representatives of 37 countries and 10 international organizations came to Toronto to attend the third annual Ukraine Reform Conference.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy was there too, with his wife, Olena Zelenska, when Ukraine’s then-new president chose the global summit in Canada to make his first overseas trip and North American debut. The young Ukrainian leader was warmly welcomed by Canada’s youthful prime minister, Justin Trudeau, and his influential (and Ukrainian Canadian) foreign affairs minister, Chrystia Freeland, who now serves as Canada’s deputy prime minister.
It was an event – and a piece of history never to be repeated.