Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced that the Government of Canada will provide significant additional military resources to help train and build the capacity of Ukrainian forces personnel. The announcement was made following a briefing on the current security situation in Ukraine with Jason Kenney, Minister of National Defence and Minister for Multiculturalism, and General Tom Lawson, Chief of the Defence Staff.
Canada will be deploying approximately 200 Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) personnel to Ukraine until March 31, 2017, to develop and deliver military training and capacity-building programs for Ukrainian forces personnel. CAF members will be deployed on both a sustained and periodic basis depending on the type of training being conducted. Their activities will include explosive ordnance disposal and improvised explosive device disposal training, military police training, medical training, flight safety training, and logistics system modernization training. Canada will also be providing individual and unit tactics training to Ukrainian National Guard personnel along with the United States.
Canada’s latest military contribution, which addresses a number of requests from the Government of Ukraine, is being provided to help the country in its efforts to maintain sovereignty, security and stability in the face of Russian aggression. The support being announced today was informed by consultations with key allies.
Canada’s position on Ukraine has been clear since the outset: we recognize the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and will never recognize the illegal Russian occupation of Crimea or any part of that country.
