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A Canadian arms manufacturer hopes to re-equip Ukraine’s military with new assault rifles as that country tries to set the stage to join NATO while at the same time battling Russian-backed rebels.

Colt Canada of Kitchener, Ont., is chasing a deal that could see Ukraine order up to 100,000 rifles.

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Alex Payne, a Colt Canada manager, said the firm had an “exploratory type meeting” in January in Ukraine with government officials. But such a meeting is just the beginning of a process that could take up to two years as Ukraine figures out exactly what weapons it needs and where they will come from.

“I believe there is a long way to go in terms of being able to say there’s a Colt Canada opportunity in the Ukraine,” Payne told Postmedia. “We have as equal a chance as anybody, but I think there’s a long process to go through in terms of them of finding the best weapon for the best price.”

In December, the Liberal government made changes to Canada’s arms export rules to allow the sale of machine-guns and other small arms to Ukraine. That process started under the Conservative government.