Up to 150 Canadian troops will be Deployed to Poland to Aid Ukrainian Refugees

In the following days, Canada will send up to 150 military soldiers to Poland to aid Warsaw in supporting Ukrainian refugees:

Canada will send up to 150 military soldiers to Poland to aid Warsaw in supporting Ukrainian refugees

Anita Anand, Canada’s defence minister, made the announcement on Thursday.

“To assist Poland’s efforts to support and assist Ukrainians fleeing violence, I am announcing today the deployment of up to 150 Canadian armed forces personnel, with approximately 100 personnel in the immediate term,” Anand said from Canadian Forces Base Trenton in Ontario, a departure point for the country’s military aid to Ukraine.

She said Ukrainian speakers will head the Canadian Armed Forces’ major component of the mission, which would provide general assistance, spiritual services, and limited medical treatment at processing sites in Poland.

A third group will operate as a liaison between Polish defence forces and Canadian immigration officials to enable the resettlement of “thousands more Ukrainians” in Canada, she added, while a handful of Canadian troops will help a Polish-led humanitarian task force.

She said Ukrainian speakers will head the Canadian Armed Forces’ major component of the mission, which would provide general assistance, spiritual services, and limited medical treatment at processing sites in Poland.

A third group will operate as a liaison between Polish defence forces and Canadian immigration officials to enable the resettlement of “thousands more Ukrainians” in Canada, she added, while a handful of Canadian troops will help a Polish-led humanitarian task force.

“These efforts are part of our Operation Reassurance – Canada’s commitment to NATO’s assurance and deterrent measures in Central and Eastern Europe – which we just strengthened and extended over the previous few months,” the defence minister added.
According to Anand, Canada will provide an additional $396 million ($500 million in Canadian dollars) in military aid to Ukraine, in addition to the $87 million ($110 million in Canadian dollars) already pledged, “so that our Ukrainian friends have the equipment they need to keep fighting this war and to win.”

After Russia, Canada has the world’s biggest Ukrainian diaspora, with over a million Canadians claiming Ukrainian ancestry.