- Fear Of Russian Spies Slows Ukrainian Refugee Admittance Into Canada: Report

Canada needs to overcome its fear of infiltration by Russian spies and speed up issuing visas for Ukrainian refugees, according to a report that was released Thursday.

"Applications by Ukrainians are starting to far outstrip the number that are being granted by the Canadian government and we don't even have a really clear picture of how many Ukrainians are coming into the country," said Robert Falconer, author of the University of Calgary report.

Statistics show as of June 22, about 190,000 Ukrainians are waiting for Canadian visa approval while the number in May was 140,000.

"Millions of Ukrainians have been displaced since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine earlier this year," said the study. "Yet, Canada has only received a small number of Ukrainian refugees compared to other countries, despite citizens' overwhelming willingness to receive them."

"Canadian immigration policies are the issue and need to be revised to allow faster and easier access for Ukrainians," it said.

The pathway to Canada via a new program that is supposed to expedite the process for Ukrainians has instead become a bottleneck.

"While the federal government has launched a program to fast-track Ukrainian refugees, Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel (CUAET), statistics show that it isn't enough," according to the report. "Under CUAET, visas and temporary residency permits are expedited for Ukrainians and their families. While the number of applications is increasing, the program's number of approvals is slowing."

Meanwhile, other countries are admitting Ukrainian refugees at a far faster pace. Ireland, for example, has dropped its visa requirements completely.

Falconer said the Canadian parliament did not follow Ireland's lead because it feared a no-visa fast-track would allow Russian spies to infiltrate Canada.

"If we're not doing the Irish model, I would say we do what's called the on-arrival model, which is what a lot of countries do. When you arrive at the airport, you have to wait for a small period while the government officials run the security checks," said Falconer.

"You do some risk assessments and can probably vet that eight-year-old kid who is probably not a Russian spy whereas an unaccompanied male in their mid-20s ... you might hold them while you process the background check and let them into the country. Let them get here to safety first and then process them from there," he said. -