Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland announced at the Solidarity of the Ukrainian People conference in Paris on Tuesday that Canada will transfer $115 million in customs revenue collected on imports from Russia and of Belarus to repair the electricity network of Kiev, the Ukrainian capital.
This network has been damaged by repeated attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure blamed on Russia.
On March 2, Canada applied a 35% tariff rate on almost all goods entering Canada from Russia and Belarus.
Tuesday’s conference, co-chaired by France and Ukraine, brings together partners, including donors and multilateral institutions, to address the most pressing challenges Ukraine will face during the winter season, including those related energy, food and water supply, health and transport.
The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, the President of the European Commission Ursula Von der Leyen and the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna are also present at the conference.
Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Canada has disbursed $2 billion in direct financial assistance to Ukraine and pledged more than $2.5 billion in military, humanitarian and other assistance , bringing the total Canadian commitment to over $5 billion so far this year.
The transfer of 115 million in customs revenue announced on Tuesday is in addition to this sum.
Canada also provides additional support to Ukraine through its participation in international financial institutions, including the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
Since the beginning of the invasion of Russia last February, these three institutions have jointly pledged to provide more than $28.5 billion to support the Ukrainian people.