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Ukraine Sends Specialist Teams to Counter Drone Threats

A Ukrainian military instructor demonstrates the operation of an interceptor drone designed to destroy Russian attack drones in the Kyiv region of Ukraine, March 11, 2026. Ukraine has deployed military and engineering units to five Middle Eastern countries —the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, and Jordan —to help intercept drones and strengthen air‑defense capabilities amid escalating regional tensions.  The teams, composed of specialist counter‑drone personnel , are advising local forces and assisting in neutralizing Iranian-made Shahed drones , which have increasingly targeted civilian and critical infrastructure during the ongoing Iran conflict. Ukrainian officials say the mission aims to bolster regional security and pave the way for long‑term defense cooperation agreements .  President Volodymyr Zelensky and Ukrainian security council secretary Rustem Umerov emphasized that while Middle Eastern partners focus on ballistic missile threats, Ukrainian un...

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Small Businesses in Canada Face Bankruptcy Risk Amidst Pandemic-Era Support Withdrawal

 


According to a recent report, thousands of small businesses in Canada are at risk of bankruptcy after the government ended pandemic-era support last month with the economy slowing at a time of high interest rates. 

Small firms that employ fewer than 100 people are critical to the Canadian economy as they give jobs to almost two-thirds of the country’s 12 million private workers. A spike in bankruptcies, which jumped 38% in the first 11 months of 2023, would weigh on economic growth, lobby groups and economists warn. 

Last month, small businesses faced a deadline to repay interest-free loans of C$60,000 ($44,676) made available to each of them during the pandemic. Of the 900,000 who had taken the government support, a fifth have not yet repaid their loans, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland said on Monday. Katherine Cuplinskas, a spokesperson for the Finance Minister said in an emailed response that the Department of Finance did not expect there will be a negative impact on the economy on account of repayment of the loans given as support during the pandemic. She said loan recipients have long had full information on timelines and have been able to plan accordingly.


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