Canada to provide Ukraine with $95 million worth of drones
20 February 2024 21:23
Canada will provide Ukraine with 800 SkyRanger R70 drones as part of a military aid package. The total value of this package is $95 million, according to the Ministry of Defence of Canada, reports 
These drones are part of a total aid package from Canada worth $500 million, which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced in June 2023.
It is noted that SkyRanger R70s have automated and autonomous navigation systems, which allows them to carry various camera systems and payloads for target detection and identification. These capabilities will help Ukrainian operators recognise people, vehicles and any heat source at a great distance, especially in darkness and bad weather.
“This multi-rotor unmanned aerial vehicle is one of the best of its kind in the world and can carry a variety of payloads up to 3.5 kilograms, including ammunition. These drones are critical for surveillance and intelligence gathering, and can also be used to transport and deliver supplies. Canada is working with Ukraine on a training plan and delivery schedule to begin this spring,”
– the statement said.
Canadian Defence Minister Bill Blair noted that this announcement will provide Ukraine with the necessary drones to detect and identify targets, which is essential to Ukraine’s ongoing fight. He underlined Canada’s commitment to continue to support Ukraine as long as necessary.
Since February 2022, Canada has provided more than $9.7 billion in total assistance to Ukraine, including $2.4 billion in military assistance.
Since the start of Operation UNIFIER, the Canadian Armed Forces’ (CAF) military training and capacity building mission in support of the Ukrainian Armed Forces (UAF), Canada has trained more than 40,000 UAF personnel. Canada has extended this mission until March 2026, providing significant capacity for the CAF to respond to Ukraine’s immediate training needs.
One million drones and army modernisation
The decision to maximise state support for drone production was made in March 2023, when the government approved a resolution. Since then, the Ministry of Digital Transformation has been actively working to expand production, provide maximum support to drone manufacturers, and remove bureaucratic obstacles to the creation of UAVs. Recently, Minister Fedorov launched the People’s Drone initiative, under which every citizen can assemble a drone at home at their own expense.
In late 2023, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed confidence that Ukraine would produce one million drones for the frontline by 2024, referring to FPV drones. Minister Fedorov responded with assurances that this target would even be exceeded.
In his last article in the Western press on the eve of his dismissal from the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Valeriy Zaluzhnyi emphasised the need for a technological breakthrough in the army, with a particular focus on unmanned technologies. The Commander-in-Chief claimed that it would take only 5 months to reorient the army to unmanned systems.
After his dismissal, Supreme Commander-in-Chief Volodymyr Zelenskyy instructed the government to work on the creation of a separate type of troops in the Armed Forces – the Unmanned Systems Forces.
