Canada extends Operation UNIFIER until 2022

“The Government of Canada is extending Operation UNIFIER, the Canadian Armed Forces military training mission in Ukraine, until the end of March 2022,” reads the news release of the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces.

As noted, Ukraine’s defence and security forces continue to make considerable progress, but “ongoing insecurity in the region underscores the importance and relevance of Canada’s military mission.”

“Through Operation UNIFIER, the Canadian Armed Forces will continue to provide military training and capacity building assistance to Ukraine’s defence and security forces. The training provided by the Canadian Armed Forces directly helps Ukraine’s defence and security forces to uphold domestic security and territorial integrity, contributing to regional and international stability,” reads the statement.

As the Department notes, “Operation UNIFIER supports Ukraine’s broader reform agenda and contributes to current Canadian efforts that invest in democracy, human rights and the rule of law in Ukraine.”

As a reminder, Canada deploys approximately 200 Canadian Armed Forces personnel to Ukraine under Operation UNIFIER. Since the start of the training in September 2015, the Canadian Armed Forces has trained more than 10,800 Ukrainian service members.

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