Canada and Ukraine: a hundred years of alliance

“We signed the first ‘drone deal’ in the Americas with Canada,” wrote Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, pointedly emphasising that in that Western hemisphere which the indifferent Donald Trump wishes to conquer, the most supportive and also visionary country is Canada, which is constantly under attack from the American president. The global order of recent decades no longer exists, but it is up to us to define and shape what is to come, and Canada’s rapprochement with the European Union and Ukraine’s technological and military leadership will certainly form part of this new order. During his visit, Zelensky and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney signed a 100-year agreement for the joint production of drones, anti-drone technologies and munitions as part of a new defence partnership. Carney, who will attend Ursula von der Leyen’s State of the Union address next week as a guest of honour, is ready to contribute Canadian technology to the European Freyja anti-ballistic missile programme.

Canada is also preparing a new package of sanctions for the autumn to hamper Russian ballistic missile production, whilst Carney has announced a $253 million package of critical interceptors for Ukraine’s air defence (to be delivered via the United States) and a further $311 million in loan guarantees to help Ukraine with natural gas supplies for the winter. The Trump Administration is continuing its strategy of indifference – or manipulation, depending on the circumstances – and has left Ukraine defenceless in the face of Vladimir Putin’s new weapons. Carney must defend himself against America’s trade attacks, but in the meantime he is aligning himself more closely with Europe and with the European country that most deserves a century-long alliance.