The mayor of Gatineau, Que., is faulting a city councillor for travelling to Russia with municipal IT equipment, though she assured reporters that city systems do not appear to have been compromised.
Mayor Maude Marquis-Bissonnette responded to the controversy around Coun. Mike Duggan’s trip, first reported by Le Droit on Monday. She did not reveal the nature of the equipment, saying that an “analysis” of the situation is ongoing.
“I think that Mr. Duggan lacked prudence in this choice he made to go onto Russian territory with city IT material,” she said in French on Monday.
In a text message exchange with Radio-Canada, Duggan declined an interview and neither confirmed nor denied making a trip to Russia.
Marquis-Bissonnette said the city has protocols to prevent intrusion into its IT systems. She said the city acted “promptly,” and that Duggan handed over the material and is co-operating with city employees.
“What seems to be demonstrated is that the servers of the city have not been compromised by the situation,” Marquis-Bissonnette confirmed.
Global Affairs Canada advises Canadians against all travel to Russia due to the impacts of the armed conflict with Ukraine and the risk of terrorism.
Duggan is the councillor for Pointe-Gatineau and sits on multiple city committees, including the audit committee and finance committee.
In 2022, Duggan said in council chambers that “certain members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) are engaging in a war against Russia on Ukrainian soil.”