- Title: Canada to send 40 combat engineers to Poland to train Ukraine soldiers
- Date: 11th October 2022
- Summary: WARSAW, POLAND (OCTOBER 11, 2022) (REUTERS) CANADA'S DEFENCE MINISTER ANITA ANAND GETTING OUT OF CAR / ANAND BEING GREETED BY POLISH DEFENCE MINISTER MARIUSZ BLASZCZAK ANAND AND BLASZCZAK SPEAKING TO POLISH ARMY OFFICIAL SOLDIERS STANDING NEXT TO POLISH, CANADIAN AND EUROPEAN UNION FLAGS ANAND AND BLASZCZAK STANDING IN FRONT OF SOLDIERS MILITARY BAND PLAYING ANAND AND BLASZCZAK INSPECTING GUARDS MILITARY BAND MARCHING IN FRONT OF ANAND AND BLASZCZAK ANAND AND BLASZCZAK TAKING SEATS VARIOUS OF ANAND AND BLASZCZAK SIGNING DOCUMENTS ANAND AND BLASZCZAK STANDING UP, EXCHANGING DOCUMENTS AND SHAKING HANDS ANAND AND BLASZCZAK ARRIVING AT NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) CANADA'S DEFENCE MINISTER, ANITA ANAND, SAYING: "Today I am announcing that in the coming weeks Canada will deploy approximately 40 combat engineers to Poland to help Polish forces train Ukrainian sappers on engineer reconnaissance, explosives, mining and de-mining." CAMERA OPERATORS FILMING / NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (English) CANADA'S DEFENCE MINISTER, ANITA ANAND, SAYING: "This new training under Operation Unifier will complement Canadian training of new Ukrainian recruits in the United Kingdom and Canadian training of Ukrainian personnel on the use of the M777 Howitzers that we donated to Ukraine." (SOUNDBITE) (English) CANADA'S DEFENCE MINISTER, ANITA ANAND, SAYING: "And I would like to commend you, Minister as well as Poland's leadership generally, for your sincere and remarkable efforts in welcoming millions of Ukrainians fleeing Putin's unjustifiable war." NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (Polish) POLISH DEFENCE MINISTER MARIUSZ BLASZCZAK: "We appreciate Canada's engagement on NATO's eastern flank. Our Polish soldiers are stationed in Latvia, where Canada is the framework nation. We participate in Canadian training. Canadian army takes part in Polish drills, so together we are building interoperation among our armies." ANAND AND BLASZCZAK SHAKING HANDS AND SAYING (English): "WE'RE STRONGER TOGETHER", MINISTERS WALKING AWAY EXTERIOR OF CANADIAN EMBASSY SIGN ON GATE READING (English, French and Polish): "CANADIAN EMBASSY" ANAND WALKING TOWARDS JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (English) CANADA'S DEFENCE MINISTER, ANITA ANAND, SAYING: "Canada wholeheartedly condemns those brutal strikes against civilian targets and infrastructure. And those strikes constitute a war crime." CANADIAN FLAG WAVING OUTSIDE EMBASSY
- Embargoed: 25th October 2022 16:34
- Keywords: Canadian defence minister Ukrainian army combat training war in Ukraine
- Location: WARSAW, POLAND
- City: WARSAW, POLAND
- Country: Poland
- Topics: Defence,Europe,Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA001148411102022RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Canada said on Tuesday (October 11) it will send 40 more combat engineers to help support Polish efforts to train Ukrainian forces, as part of its commitment to increasing military aid for Ukraine.
The Canadian Armed Forces have trained more than 33,000 Ukrainian military and security personnel since 2015, but have paused aspects of the training effort since February.
"Canada will deploy approximately 40 combat engineers to Poland to help Polish Forces train Ukrainian sappers on engineer reconnaissance, explosives, mining and de-mining," Canada's Defence Minister Anita Anand told a news conference in Warsaw.
Canadian forces have also helped the Polish military and government in supporting refugee reception centres and have helped support Britain-based training programs.
Anand said the additional training "will complement Canadian training of new Ukrainian recruits in the United Kingdom, and Canadian training of Ukrainian personnel on the use of the M777 howitzers that we donated to Ukraine."
Anand condemned Russia's strikes against civilian targets and infrastructure and said it constituted "a war crime".
Russia rained cruise missiles on Ukrainian cities on Monday (October 10) in what the United States called "horrific strikes," killing civilians and knocking out power supplies, in its most widespread air attacks since the start of the war in February.
Russia calls its actions in Ukraine a "special operation" that it says is not designed to occupy territory but to destroy its southern neighbour's military capabilities and capture what it regards as dangerous nationalists. It has denied deliberately attacking civilians.
(Production: Kuba Stezycki, Malgorzata Wojtunik) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2022. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None