Canada will purchase a US-made missile defence system for Ukraine, the Prime Minister's Office announced during the North American Leaders' Summit in Mexico City on Tuesday.."Canada's National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS) donation will help Ukraine strengthen its air defence systems against destructive air attacks on military sites, civilian critical infrastructure and population centres," the Department of National Defence said in a press release..The announcement was made shortly after a meeting between Trudeau and US President Joe Biden..Canada's donation to Ukraine will cost taxpayers approximately $406 million. The amount will come from $500 million in aid to Ukraine Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced back in November 2022. .The release did not say when the system is expected to arrive in Ukraine..The missile defence system, designed and developed jointly by the US defence company Raytheon and Norway-based Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace, offers a "state-of-the-art defence system that can maximize their ability to identify, engage and destroy current and evolving enemy aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles and emerging cruise missile threats.".The system will likely be of great use to Ukraine, which has suffered under frequent missile attacks from Russia, often targeting its energy infrastructure..Ukrainian President Volodymy Zelenskyy thanked Trudeau for the donation in a Tweet on Tuesday.."Dear Justin Trudeau, your true leadership in standing for democracy and human rights has been vividly proven again," Zelenskyy said. "Thank you for helping us to protect our sky. NASAMS procured for us by Canada will be a strong shield for our cities and citizens.".Since Russia first invaded Ukraine back in February 2022, Canada provided more than $3.4 billion in military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine..It was also announced Biden will visit Canada in March, although a date or location was not given. It will be Biden's first official trip to the country since he became president in January 2021.
