FREELAND BLOWING HOT AIR

Canada has a “political responsibility” to step up as Russia strangles flows of natural gas to European allies — and that includes a role for Ottawa in advancing a potential East Coast LNG plant, says Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland.

Speaking with journalists from Saint John, N.B., on Wednesday, Freeland was asked about whether Canada should be doing more to supply European countries with LNG — liquefied natural gas — as those countries rapidly scale back their dependence on Russian fuel following its invasion in Ukraine.

On whether she backed a plant in Saint John specifically, though, Freeland did not say.

“I think this is not the moment to pick specific projects,” she said.