KYIV — Prime Minister Mark Carney arrived in Kyiv on Sunday where he is expected to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and announce further details of new military assistance Canada promised in June.
The trip marks the prime minister’s first visit to the country and comes during a European trip that includes stops in Poland, Germany and Latvia.
Carney was invited as a special guest of Zelenskyy to mark Ukraine’s Independence Day.
Carney is expected to announce more details of the $2-billion aid package Canada pledged at the G7 Summit in Kananaskis, Alta., earlier this year.
The trip comes as efforts to broker a peace between Ukraine and Russia intensify.
U.S. President Donald Trump hosted a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska earlier this month and later hosted Zelenskyy and other European leaders at the White House.
Despite those talks, Moscow unleashed a heavy barrage of strikes on Ukraine earlier this week.
A Canadian government official said Russia is making “slow” progress in its campaign to retake Ukrainian soil.
Canadian intelligence suggests Russia is losing some 1,000 soldiers per day in the conflict while Ukraine is estimated to be losing about 500 soldiers daily, the official said.
Russia has been recruiting soldiers from other counties, such as North Korea, to sustain its war effort, the official said.
That has led to a lack of alignment in training in the Russian ranks leading to a loss of morale, giving Ukraine an advantage on that front.
Canada has been part of talks for more than two years on how to help secure any sort of peace deal in Ukraine.
Those talks morphed last fall into the Coalition of the Willing, a group of nations who have offered to help fund or staff a peacekeeping force on Ukrainian territory. It includes most European nations and others such as Canada, Japan and Australia.
Experts say Canada has a vested interest in allying with Ukraine and other Western nations in guarding against an expansionist Russia, particularly in Arctic territories.
The Canadian official said it’s important within the coalition to keep momentum building instead of having steps back as in the past.
Security guarantees will be largely dependent on the United States’ commitment; Trump has expressed wanting to avoid having U.S. troops on the ground in Ukraine but has suggested air presence and intelligence support could be part of any security guarantees in an eventual peace deal.
There are Canadian soldiers in Europe as part of Operation Unifier, a mission to train Ukrainian soldiers launched after Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014.
Canada has not ruled out putting boots on the ground in Ukraine, the official said.
Canada’s support so far in the conflict includes some $22 billion in financial support for Ukraine, largely in the form of loans, according to Ottawa’s tallies. A separate, independent estimate from the Kiel group pegs this amount closer to $19.7 billion.
Canada has an outsized role in humanitarian initiatives, such as work to resettle Ukrainian children abducted by Russia, maintain maternal health services and the detection and removal of landmines.
The Canadian official said Carney’s visit on Independence Day reflects Canada being seen as important supporter outside Europe.
Canada has opened its doors to refugees fleeing the war and already has a major Ukrainian diaspora in the country.
– With files from Craig Lord in Warsaw
This story was first published by The Canadian Press on Aug. 24, 2025.
Bill Graveland, The Canadian Press
