Canadian troops head to Ukraine in non-combat role
OTTAWA— Canadian troops are on their way to another global hot spot, this time to Ukraine to help troops there push back against the aggression of Russian-backed rebels claiming territory in eastern regions of the country.
But Defence Minister Jason Kenney said the 200 troops that will soon be headed to Ukraine will be on a non-combat mission, far from the actual hostilities, to help train local forces.
Gen. Tom Lawson, the chief of defence staff, said Ukrainian soldiers have “pride and fighting spirit” and the role of Canadian trainers will be to “accelerate” their fighting abilities.
The military assistance was immediately praised by Ukraine but could be viewed as a provocative move by Russia, adding to the chill between Moscow and Ottawa.
The troop deployment, which will last two years, is the latest response by Ottawa to Russia’s moves in early 2014 to annex Crimea and then back separatist forces in eastern Ukraine.
It also marks the second deployment of Canadian soldiers into a regional hot spot. Special forces soldiers are already on the ground in northern Iraq training Kurdish and Iraqi forces, who are battling Islamic extremists.
Months into that deployment, it was revealed that Canadian special forces soldiers sent on a non-combat mission were calling in airstrikes and exchanging gunfire with extremists. The military explained the revelation by saying the mission had “evolved.”
When training begins this summer in Ukraine, however, most of the Canadians will be at a NATO facility in Yavoriv in western Ukraine, close to the Polish border.
“These Canadian Armed Forces personnel will not be going anywhere remotely close to the conflict zone in eastern Ukraine,” Kenney said Tuesday.
The Canadian soldiers will join with the U.S. and Britain to train their Ukrainian counterparts in areas such as medicine, flight safety, logistics and disposal of improvised explosive devices.
Kenney said Canada has discussed with U.S., Germany and Britain the possibility of supplying Ukraine with ammunition and weapons. “It’s our
“These Canadian Armed Forces personnel will not be going anywhere remotely close to the conflict zone in eastern Ukraine.” JASON KENNEY DEFENCE MINISTER
government’s view that Canada cannot and should not act alone in that respect, but we are leaving all options on the table.”
The defence minister turned aside suggestions that Canada risked escalating tensions with Russia with this latest assistance to Ukraine.
“The confrontation in this area is all coming from Vladimir Putin’s illegal aggression,” Kenney said.
“We believe that by helping to strengthen and professionalize the Ukrainian military, that too helps improve deterrence and also reduce casualties,” he said. Marko Shevchenko, Ukraine’s chargé d’affaires, welcomed Canada’s decision.
“Unfortunately, Putin’s regime prefers to talk with the gun in the hand. So Ukraine today is facing its biggest threat in its modern history,” Shevchenko said.
Canadian shipments of military gear along with the new training mission “will considerably increase our capacity to resist Putin’s regime, Putin’s aggression and finally save the lives of many civilians,” Shevchenko said.