Today, the Honourable Bill Blair, Minister of National Defence, announced that Canada will contribute to the United Kingdom-led partnership that is delivering high priority air defence equipment to Ukraine. This initiative was established in June 2023 by several countries including Denmark, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States, and will help provide urgently needed air defence missiles to help Ukraine defend against Russia's missile and drone attacks.
Canada will contribute $33 million (CAD) to the partnership, which is providing Ukraine with hundreds of short- and medium-range air defence missiles and associated systems required to protect Ukraine's critical national infrastructure. This donation is funded as part of the $500 million in new funding for military assistance for Ukraine announced in Kyiv, Ukraine by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in June 2023.
Minister Blair made this announcement during his visit to Lydd Military Training Camp, the home of Canada's Operation UNIFIER in the UK, and the UK's own Operation INTERFLEX, training missions that equip Ukrainian recruits with the tools that they need to defend themselves. Approximately 170 Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) members are deployed to the UK under Operation UNIFIER.
During his visit, Minister Blair held a town hall with CAF members, and observed several Canadian-led training activities for Ukrainian recruits.
Since August 2022, CAF personnel deployed in the UK have trained approximately 2,600 Armed Forces of Ukraine recruits in collaboration with the UK's Operation INTERFLEX. The Canadian-led courses last several weeks and focus on topics such as weapons handling, battlefield first aid, fieldcraft, patrol tactics, and the Law of Armed Conflict. Under Operation UNIFIER, Canada has trained more than 38,000 Ukrainian personnel since 2015.
Canada will continue working closely with allies and partners to help Ukraine respond to its most urgent defence needs, including air defence.
