Canada and Ukraine are significantly expanding their cooperation on drone production, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday.
"Today, Canada and Ukraine forged a new partnership which will equip the Canadian Armed Forces with world-leading drone capabilities, create jobs across Canada, and support Ukraine as they fight to achieve a just and lasting peace," Carney told a press conference in Calgary.
Cooperation between the two countries is to be expanded across all areas of drone production, "from critical metals and minerals to engineering," according to a statement.
Canada also aims to establish production capacity for "millions of drones" within the next two years. Carney said Canada currently has a total of 2,000 drones.
Carney also pledged further support for Ukraine, including interceptor missiles for air defence.
Zelensky said the assistance would include ammunition for Patriot air defence systems and F-16 fighter jets, as well as support for drone production.
"Overall, today's arrangements amount to more than $2 billion [US$1.45 billion] – including a government package of more than $1 billion for our defence, primarily to protect our skies: missiles for Patriots, munitions for F-16s, and drone coproduction. There are also arrangements for our energy sector and our joint initiatives," Zelensky said.
Twenty-one Ukrainian fighter pilots are currently being trained in Canada, Zelensky said.
"With the investments announced today, Canada's total commitments of multifaceted assistance for Ukraine have now reached over $26 billion since 2022," the Canadian government said.
Zelensky also thanked Canada for its willingness to participate in the development of the European Freyja missile defence system.