Prime Minister Justin Trudeau answers questions at a news conference during the Calgary Stampede in Calgary, Alberta.TODD KOROL/Reuters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau described the Bastille Day violence in Nice as being the work of a "terrorist" and said Canada will stand with France and the international community to fight such attacks.
"Last night more than 80 people, including many children, were killed in a terrorist attack in Nice," Mr. Trudeau said Friday while speaking to reporters at Calgary's City Hall.
The Prime Minister is in Calgary to attend events for the annual Stampede, an annual political pilgrimage for federal leaders of every stripe.
Although Mr. Trudeau made a major infrastructure funding announcement with Alberta Premier Rachel Notley and Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi, and attended the Grandstand rodeo, Friday's visit to the 10-day festival had a sombre tone.
Attending a Stampede pancake breakfast with his daughter Ella-Grace, Mr. Trudeau started his speech with words of condolences to the family of Calgary homicide victims Sara Baillie and her five-year-old daughter Taliyah Leigh Marsman.
He went on to Thursday's events in the southern French city, saying his heart goes out to the victims and the families of those caught in the "terrible attack."
"Canada stands with France as a steadfast ally. We will work with the international community to fight terror to ensure that we live in a peaceful world."
Later, a reporter asked the Prime Minister for his take on a tweet from the Russian Embassy in Canada on Friday that stated: "Terrorist attack in Nice – another wake-up call to join efforts in fighting real threat, not NATO-devised phantoms."
In response, the Prime Minister reiterated his support to Operation Reassurance, Canada's commitment to send an estimated 650 Canadian soldiers to Latvia as part of North Atlantic Treaty Organization deterrence measures in response to Russian actions.
He said the deployment demonstrates that NATO stands together against Russia's "troubling rhetoric and indeed actions in the Ukraine, among other places."
On terrorism, he spoke separately. "Every country around the world is preoccupied by terrorism, and that's why countries come together to try and address this as best they can to protect their citizens," Mr. Trudeau said.
"Regardless of what form of government you have, you are expected to keep citizens safe and that's something the global community is engaged on in a broad range of ways."