Trudeau Announces New Military Aid, Bilateral Agreements During Ukraine PM’s Visit

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau leave a press conference in Toronto on April 11, 2023. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn)

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a new round of military and economic support for Ukraine on April 11, coinciding with a visit from Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal to Canada.

At a joint press conference in Toronto, Trudeau also announced several new bilateral agreements and a plan for Canada to ship $59 million in weapons to Ukraine to aid in the war against Russia.

“We will continue to be there to support [Ukraine] as long as it’s needed. Canada will always be there to defend our values, our democracy, as well as the international rule of law,” Trudeau said during the press conference.

On top of the over $1 billion of military aid sent to Ukraine since Russia invaded in February 2022, the measures announced today include an additional $59 million to send the country 21,000 assault rifles, 38 machine guns, and over 2.4 million rounds of ammunition from Colt Canada, a company headquartered in Kitchener, Ont.

“This will help the armed forces of Ukraine continue to defend their freedom and fight for Ukraine’s territorial integrity,” Trudeau said.

The prime minister said the $2.4 billion dollar loan to Ukraine, first announced in Budget 2023, has now been disbursed to help Ukraine with services like “pension payments, purchasing fuel, and restoring damaged energy infrastructure.”

Canada and Ukraine signed a joint declaration on the conclusion of negotiations for the modernization of the Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement, according to an April 11 press release from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). The statement said the trade deal will support the “long-term security, stability, and economic development in Ukraine, as well as the creation of good middle-class jobs here in Canada.”

The two countries also signed a bilateral Youth Mobility Agreement, which the PMO said allows Ukrainian youth to work and travel to Canada, while giving Canadian youth the opportunity to assist with rebuilding Ukraine after Russia withdraws its forces from the country.

Trudeau also announced that Canada would enact new sanctions on 14 Russian individuals and 34 entities involved in the war, including several security targets linked to the Russian-backed Wagner Group and Russia’s aviation sector. Additional sanctions were put on nine entities related to the Belarusian financial sector.

During the press conference, Trudeau was asked about reports that pro-Russian hackers took credit for a recent denial-of-service attack on several Canadian government websites. For several hours on April 11, the Senate and the PMO websites would not load.

Trudeau said it is “not uncommon” for Russian hackers to target countries that welcome Ukrainian delegations or leadership, and that the “timing isn’t surprising.”

“In case anyone was wondering, Russia being able to bring down an official government of Canada webpage for a few hours is in no way going to dissuade us from our unshakeable support of Ukraine,” he said.