CALGARY -- Canada will give Ukraine a “very important package of air defence” as well as support for the energy industry, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Thursday ahead of a meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney. Canada, one of Ukraine’s most vocal defenders, has committed more than $25.5 billion in overall aid since Russia invaded in February 2022, including $8.5 billion in military assistance. Kyiv is running critically low on U.S.-made Patriot interceptors capable of stopping Russia’s ballistic missiles at a time when Moscow is stepping up its attacks. “This is a very important package of air defence. This is crucial,” Zelenskyy told reporters. He did not give details about the package, or speak about what Canada would do to back the energy industry. He and Carney are due to address the media at around 10:30 Mountain Time (1630 GMT). Canada is home to an estimated 1.3 to 1.4 million people of Ukrainian descent, forming one of the largest Ukrainian diasporas in the world. In his own remarks to reporters, Carney promised Canada would offer Kyiv more aid to help it fend off Russian attacks as well as back its efforts to join NATO and the European Union. “Ukrainians help build this province, this country. Canada will help rebuild Ukraine when peace comes,” he said. On arrival in Canada, Zelenskyy had said support for Ukraine’s air defences and winter preparation would be the main focus of his visit. Reporting by Amanda Stephenson in Calgary and Anna Pruchnicka in Gdansk; Writing by David Ljunggren; Editing by Alex Richardson and Chizu Nomiyama, Reuters
