By Amanda Stephenson
CALGARY, Alberta, Sept 10 (Reuters) - Canada has agreed a C$350 million aid package for Kyiv to acquire air defense interceptors, Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Thursday after meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
Kyiv is running critically low on U.S.-made Patriot interceptors capable of stopping Russia's ballistic missiles at a time when Moscow is stepping up its attacks.
"As Russia escalates its barbaric aerial warfare indiscriminately targeting civilian populations, Ukraine's air defences are critical," Carney told reporters in Calgary.
"Earlier today Canada and Ukraine finalised an agreement to deliver critical air defence interceptors ... this C$350 million equipment package will help protect Ukraine's people, infrastructure, and skies," he said.
He did not give details of which interceptors would be delivered or when the aid would start flowing.
The weapons will be provided through a U.S. program that allows third party nations to quickly buy and supply weapons such as Patriot missiles to Ukraine.
Canada, one of Ukraine's most vocal defenders, has committed more than C$25.5 billion in overall aid since Russia invaded in February 2022, including C$8.5 billion in military assistance.
Carney also said Canada aimed to ramp up drone production to be able to produce millions of units within the next two years. A third of those would go to Ukraine, he said.
Canada is home to an estimated 1.3 to 1.4 million people of Ukrainian descent, forming one of the largest Ukrainian diasporas in the world.
(Writing by David LjunggrenEditing by Alex Richardson, Chizu Nomiyama and Deepa Babington)
