The first of the Leopard 2 tanks Canada is donating to Ukrainian forces has arrived in Poland.
Defence Minister Anita Anand announced the news in a tweet on Sunday, accompanied by a photo of a tank rolling out of the belly of a plane.
鈥淎longside our allies, we鈥檒l soon be training the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the use of this equipment,鈥� she stated in the tweet. 鈥淐anada will continue to #StandWithUkraine.鈥�
Canada pledged at the end of January to send four battle tanks to Ukraine to aid in their continuing battle against Russian forces, which invaded the country nearly a year ago.
The tanks will be accompanied by Canadian Armed Forces members to train Ukrainian soldiers in their use, with the training taking place in a third country before the tanks see battle.
The move came shortly after Germany and the United States announced Jan. 25 they would be organizing the shipment of dozens of Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. In response, Poland called on Germany to allow more countries such as Canada to ship the Leopard 2 tanks, which are German-made, to Ukraine.
Canada may send additional tanks at a later date, according to previous comments made by Anand.
With files from 麻豆影视 Senior Digital Parliamentary Reporter Rachel Aiello
