Canada will purchase a US-made missile system for Ukraine.
Trudeau and Biden were welcomed to Mexico for a meeting of North American leaders. On that occasion, Trudeau spoke to Biden about the purchase during separate discussions the two men had about supporting Ukraine in its war against Russia.
“This is Canada’s first donation of air defense systems to Ukraine,” Defense Minister Anita Anand said on Twitter after the announcement, as cited by Reuters.
The air defense system is Ukraine’s top priority, he told his Ukrainian counterpart, Oleksii Reznikov, in a telephone conversation on Tuesday.
“The NASAMS is a short- and medium-range ground-based air defense system that protects against attacks from drones, missiles and aircraft,” Anand said.
The contribution amounts to approximately $302.6 million and is in addition to what Canada promised Ukraine in November, according to a Defense Department statement.
“Trudeau and Biden also discussed their shared commitment to North American defense, including the acquisition of Canadian F-35 fighter jets for the Royal Canadian Air Force,” according to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office.
Canada finalized a deal on Monday to buy 88 F-35 fighter jets from U.S. defense firm Lockheed Martin Corp, as part of a mammoth project to replace its aging fighter fleet.
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