441-02485 (Foreign affairs)

The Government of Canada remains committed to Ukraine, and is continually evaluating options to provide Ukraine with the comprehensive military assistance needed to defend its sovereignty and security.

Since the beginning of 2022, National Defence has committed $4.5 billion in military assistance to Ukraine, including armoured vehicles, heavy artillery, body armour, gas masks, helmets, drone cameras, high-resolution satellite imagery, anti-armour weapons systems, rocket launchers, surplus small arms ammunition, as well as other highly specialized pieces of military equipment.

On June 13, 2024, at the 23^rd meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UCDG), the Minister of National Defence announced that Canada plans to send an initial tranche of over 2,000 CRV7 rocket motors to Ukraine. The decommissioned rocket motors were previously used by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) on CF-18 fighter aircraft, and were declared surplus by the Canadian Armed Forces in August 2008. Given the time since they were stored and decommissioned, testing on the CRV7 rocket motors was required for safety purposes. Therefore, over the past few months, Magellan Aerospace and Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) have been testing the rocket motors to ensure their viability following a request from the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) for this equipment.

Initial testing on the CRV7 motors indicates that the rockets’ performance remains within acceptable standards, and further testing is ongoing to ensure that the motors can be safely packaged and transported. National Defence is also working to secure the requisite waivers and permits to transport the equipment safely.

National Defence will continue to provide updates on the status of this initiative, as well as other donations. For more information on Canada’s comprehensive military aid to Ukraine, please visit: https://www.canada.ca/en/department-national-defence/campaigns/canadian-military-support-to-ukraine.html

Finally, Canada will continue to work closely with its Partners and Allies to provide Ukraine with the military assistance it needs as it fights against Russia’s illegal and unjustifiable invasion. The Minister of National Defence remains in close contact with Ukraine’s Minister of Defence to discuss Ukraine’s most pressing security needs and how Canada can best continue to help.