Canada sends hundreds of drones to aid Ukraine's sky protection
Canada will transfer more than 800 SkyRanger R70 multi-role unmanned aerial vehicles to Ukraine to help in the war with the Russian Federation, says Canadian Defense Minister Bill Blair.
The drones will be provided by Teledyne in Waterloo, Ont., with a total cost of more than C$95 million (US$70.44 million).
"Today's announcement ensures that Ukraine has the drones it needs to detect and identify targets which are critical to Ukraine's ongoing fight. Canada will stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes," Blair said.
The aid is financed by the 500 million Canadian dollars in military aid announced by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during a visit to Kyiv last year.
Since February 2022, Canada has provided more than CAD 9.7 billion in aid to Ukraine, including more than CAD 2.4 billion in military aid.
During a meeting with NATO allies in Brussels on February 14, Blair announced that Canada would allocate more than 60 million Canadian dollars to Ukraine.
Today one US dollar is equal to 1.3487 Canadian dollars.
Canadian aid to Ukraine
Last June, Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau paid an official visit to Kyiv. At the end of the visit, he announced that the country's government would provide Ukraine with a new military aid package worth 500 million Canadian dollars (over 370 million US dollars). Ottawa will also participate in the aviation coalition.
Later, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy discussed strengthening air defense with Trudeau.
The leaders also discussed strengthening the defense of the Ukrainian sky.
