National Defence Minister Anita Anand announced on April 21 that Canada will be sending more military aid to Ukraine, which will include about $39 million worth of weapons and funding for “non-lethal military assistance projects.”
Anand announced the new funding during a visit to Germany where she is attending the Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting along with her counterparts from the U.S. and other allies.
Canada’s new military aid package for Ukraine includes a contribution of more than $34 million for NATO’s Ukraine Comprehensive Assistance Package Trust Fund, which is intended to supply Ukraine with over 3 million litres of fuel supplies and also some “modular floatation bridge assets to enable wet-gap crossing.”
In addition, $2.5 million of Canada’s new funding will go toward purchasing sniper rifles and ammunition for Ukraine from the Winnipeg-based Prairie Gun Works.
Canada is also sending 16 new radio sets to the country, which are worth $2 million in total. The radios are meant to accompany Canada’s previous donation of eight Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, which were sent earlier this year in two separate tranches.
$8 Billion
In total, Canada has pledged over $8 billion in financial, military, and humanitarian aid to Ukraine since the country was invaded by Russia in February 2022.Trudeau said on the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion that Canada would “continue to stand with the people of Ukraine as long as it takes.”
When asked if Ottawa should “provide more financial aid to help Ukraine defend itself from Russia, even if it adds to the deficit,” only 32 percent of respondents agreed, while 36 percent disagreed. Twenty-six percent said they were neutral on the subject, and the remaining respondents said they were unsure.
Freeland also told reporters in Pickering, Ont., on April 20 that Canada is contributing more aid to Ukraine than any other G7 country “on a per-capita basis.”
“When it comes to financing the Government of Ukraine, we’re there where it matters,” she said.
