OTTAWA—Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan says the federal government is concerned about a new outbreak of fighting in Ukraine and is looking at ways to “improve” Canada’s military support to the country. Canada first deployed about 200 troops to Ukraine in the summer of 2015 to help train government forces after Russia annexed Crimea and began supporting separatist forces in Ukraine’s Donbass region. The mission, which Prime Minister Justin Trudeau toured during a visit to the country in July, has so far resulted in 2,600 Ukrainian troops being trained primarily in the basic soldiering. “I’ve always said when we send troops, we want to make sure they have a meaningful impact,” Sajjan said. There are also concerns about ongoing problems with corruption among the Ukrainian military, particularly at the top levels.

Source: thestar February 01, 2017 21:45 UTC