Mr. Speaker, National Defence provided a cache of weapons and equipment, originally stored at 25 Canadian Forces Supply Depot in Montreal, to the Armed Forces of Ukraine in February 2022 under an agreement that they would not be transferred to any other entity.
The weapons that were stored at the supply depot were purchased in new condition and stored in their original manufacturer provided packaging and, therefore, were not maintained.
Small arms stored in original packaging require a process to activate, which includes removal of protective lubricants and verification of working condition. Canadian Armed Forces personnel activated and verified these weapons before their donation to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The weapons transferred included machine guns, pistols, carbines, 1.5 million rounds of ammunition, sniper rifles and various related equipment. In processing Order Paper questions, National Defence applies the principles of the Access to Information Act. The specific quantity and description of the make and model of weapons are not included for operational and security reasons.