Canada to fund shipment of thousands of shells to Ukraine
Canada plans to provide funding for Czechia's initiative to deliver a large quantity of artillery shells to Ukraine, reports CBC News.
According to sources cited by the news agency, the Canadian government may allocate up to $30 million to implement the plan to deliver artillery shells to Ukraine proposed by Czech President Petr Pavel at the Munich Security Conference.
Earlier, Canadian Defense Minister Bill Blair mentioned that his country was in talks with the Czechs but did not disclose details.
"I've entered into the memorandum of understanding with one of our European allies, the Czech Republic, with respect to perhaps acquiring munitions that they currently have in their possession that will enable us to ... make them available more rapidly to Ukraine as we ramp up our own production," he emphasized.
What Czechia proposed
On Saturday, February 17, during the Munich Security Conference, Czech President Petr Pavel announced that his country had found 800,000 shells for Ukraine - half a million units of 155-millimeter caliber ammunition and 300,000 units of 122-millimeter caliber ammunition.
According to him, the shells could be delivered to Ukraine within weeks if Czechia could secure funding from the United States, Germany, Sweden, and other countries.
Pavel did not disclose exactly where the shells for Ukraine would come from.