Canada is ready to commit a contingent of soldiers to the British military’s ambitious program to turn Ukrainian civilians into combat units, CBC News has learned.
Outgoing British Prime Minister Boris Johnson committed to the training plan in mid-June while meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv.
Up to 10,000 Ukrainian soldiers are expected to fly to the UK for basic and specialist military courses lasting five weeks. The first tranche of Ukrainian recruits arrived and training began in early July.
Three sources familiar with the file but not authorized to speak publicly told CBC News that Canada intends to contribute to the British-led effort. Defense Minister Anita Anand is expected to formally announce it today.
The plan boils down to restarting Operation Unifer, the long-running training mission in which — until it ended last winter — more than 35,000 Ukrainian soldiers received advanced combat instruction from Canadian troops.
That mission, conducted on Ukrainian soil, was halted and troops withdrawn from the eastern European country in mid-February on the eve of a full-scale Russian invasion.
About 200 soldiers and contingents took part in it. Two of the three sources said the latest initiative with the British would “involve roughly the same number”.
A third source was more specific, saying the new program would include three training teams of roughly 60 members each, plus additional command staff.
The Ukrainian government has repeatedly pressed Canada to resume training in a third country, said diplomatic sources, who spoke separately to CBC News and spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the file.
The Liberal government has made the training mission, which began under the previous Conservative government, a point of pride and has often been cited as evidence of Canada’s commitment to Ukraine’s security.
Trudeau left the door open for UK participation in the effort
Asked about Johnson’s training plan at the end of a NATO summit in June, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau left the door open to involvement.
“Canada will continue to look for opportunities to continue to support Ukraine in various ways,” he said. “We have been actively training the howitzers we made in Latvia [and] we’re also looking for other ways to be helpful.”
The prime minister was referring to the training, which took place last spring after Canada donated four of the army’s M-777 155mm howitzers to Ukraine.
Prior to the outbreak of full-scale war in Ukraine, Britain separately helped train Ukrainian forces between 2015 and 2022 under the banner of Operation Orbital, enrolling an estimated 22,000 troops in their programme.
He also stepped down when Moscow launched a so-called special military operation to topple the government in Kyiv.
When the UK opened its new training program in early July, it invited allies to participate. In addition to Canada stepping forward, another unidentified Commonwealth country is expected to join the effort.
British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace visited one of the training areas after the first recruits arrived and praised the initiative.
“Using the expertise of the world-class British military, we will help Ukraine rebuild its forces and increase its resistance as they defend their country’s sovereignty and their right to choose their own future,” Wallace was quoted as saying by British media. .
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