Canadian Government is considering deployment of its troops in Ukraine to warn off a renewed invasion threat from Russian forces.
On November 24, The Globe and Mail reported that Canada is considering larger deployments to Ukraine, including deploying hundreds of additional troops to support the Canadian soldiers already in Ukraine on a training mission and redeploying some of the CF-18 fighter jets currently based in Romania.
Citing two sources with knowledge of the deliberations, The Globe and Mail reported that Canada is considering bolstering its military mission to Ukraine, amid a debate over whether additional NATO forces would deter Russian President Vladimir Putin from further aggression against his country’s neighbor.
As the newspaper said that any reinforcement would be intended as a message to Mr. Putin, who has raised alarm for the second time this year by amassing troops and equipment near his country’s borders with Ukraine.
Ukrainian officials fear the current military context could foreshadow a repeat of Russian moves that led to Moscow’s annexation of Crimea in 2014.
The Russian buildup near the Ukrainian border comes just after US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin toured the Black Sea region, stopping in NATO partner states Ukraine and Georgia and alliance full member Romania, to express solidarity and build more support for confronting Russia in the area.