The Canadian government has announced a new batch of military aid to Ukraine, which will include air defense systems.
Canada will purchase NASAMS air defense systems from the United States and transfer them to Ukraine. Canadian Defense Minister Anita Anand announced this on Twitter.
“Air defense systems are Ukraine’s top priority. That’s why Canada is buying an advanced national anti-aircraft missile system (NASAMS) from the US in order to transfer it to Ukraine,” she said.
The minister emphasized that this will be the first air defense system transferred by Canada for the needs of the Ukrainian army. She explained the choice of the NASAMS system with high efficiency indicators.
“In the conditions of brutal Russian airstrikes in Ukraine, this air defense system will help protect Ukrainian settlements and critical infrastructure from attacks by drones, missiles and aircraft,” Anand said.
Delivery of NASAMS to Ukraine
NASAMS is a mobile anti-aircraft missile system developed jointly by Norway and the United States. The complex is capable of intercepting air targets at a distance of up to 40 km and an altitude of up to 16 km.
For the first time, NASAMS complexes were transferred to Ukraine in October – after the beginning of the Russian campaign to destroy the Ukrainian energy system. In early November, Defense Minister Reznikov announced that NASAMS air defense systems had already arrived.
During the missile attack on New Year’s Eve, the NASAMS systems showed high efficiency. The Air Force admitted that they barely had time to reload them.
