Canada announces it will be training Ukrainian soldiers in Latvia as part of Operation Unifier, and deployment there will support the flank of NATO's Ukrainian mission in general. This means that Canada will be the third country to participate in Operation Unifier alongside Britain and Poland.
Canadian Defence Minister Anita Anan said:
“It is also a recognition that our world is growing increasingly dark, and that a year-and-a-half into the further illegal and unjustifiable invasion of Ukraine by Vladimir Putin, we cannot let up, this war does not seem to have an end in the near term”
This announcement was made after a meeting between Anan and Latvian Defence Minister Ināra Mūrniece in Canada’s capital of Ottawa.
Prior to Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine, Canada had been training more than 36,000 Ukrainian soldiers after Russia’s annexation of Crimea, with 1,375 Canadian armed forces members stationed in Europe prior to the current conflict.
“The training will instruct Ukrainian junior officers on responsibilities in battle, the process of planning and orders, manoeuvre coordination, intelligence reconnaissance, planning and executing”
Minister Anand said.
The Latvian and Canadian capitalist classes are to make a large profit from this as they have benefitted immensely from the special military operation. Military spending to Ukraine in Latvia accounts for 2.3% of Latvia’s GDP and is expected to reach 3%, Canada has spent over $1 billion for arms shipments to Ukraine.
Currently 800 Canadian soldiers have been deployed to Latvia but this number is expected to increase, as the Canadian military is stretched thin with 16,000 positions unfilled this problem has been exacerbated by the recent wildfires in Quebec, BC and Alberta.
This only shows the wastefulness of the Canadian government when there are real needs by the Canadian people at home. Instead of seeking to develop its national economy and bring jobs for all Canadians, the country follows it's American partners in plans to extract imperialist super-profits in Ukraine.