A second Ukrainian ship carrying wheat leaves the port of Chornomorsk

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky continues his North American tour with a visit Friday to Canada, which has supported him since the beginning of the Russian invasion. Late Thursday evening, President Zelensky arrived from the United States to the Canadian capital, Ottawa, where he was received by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who assured him “Unwavering support” Canada in its conflict with Russia.

Volodymyr Zelensky, accompanied by his Defense Minister Rustam Omerov, is scheduled to meet with the Governor General of Canada, Marie Simon, and deliver a speech before the Canadian Parliament. He must then travel with Justin Trudeau to Greater Toronto, where the two heads of state will meet with business leaders and members of the Ukrainian-Canadian community.

Canada, the last G7 country visited by the leader, has the second largest Ukrainian community in the world after Russia, with about 1.4 million people of Ukrainian origin living on its territory. This is the first official visit by the Ukrainian president to Canadian territory since the start of the Russian invasion in February 2022. In March, Volodymyr Zelensky addressed Canadian parliamentarians via video.

“The Ukrainian people are the spearhead that determines, at this moment, the future of the 21st century^H a century “Prime Minister Trudeau made the announcement in a press release Thursday evening. He stressed that Canada will remain alongside Ukraine “Whatever it takes” And that the country will continue to provide it “Unwavering support for the Ukrainian people fighting for their sovereignty and democracy”.

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Canada has committed more than $8.9 billion to support Ukraine through a wide range of measures, “Including $4.95 billion in direct financial support and more than $1.8 billion in military aid.”.

Ottawa has also trained more than 36,000 Ukrainian soldiers and provided military assistance, including eight Leopard 2 main battle tanks, an armored rescue vehicle, 39 armored vehicles, anti-tank weapons, drones, and satellite communications equipment.

Justin Trudeau visited Ukraine in June and privately announced that Ottawa would participate in multilateral efforts to train Ukrainian fighter pilots.