Canada announced Friday it will ban the import of handguns beginning on August 19, as part of a wider proposed freeze in the wake of high-profile mass shootings in the United States.

Such guns "have one purpose and one purpose only and that is to kill people," Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino told a press briefing announcing the move.

On Wednesday, the Canada Border Services Agency announced two major seizures in western Canada of "ghost guns," which have no serial numbers and are difficult to trace.

From January 1, 2019 to June 30, 2022, CBSA Pacific Region seized 581 firearms at ports of entry and in international mailings.

Friday's announcement comes months Prime Minister Justin Trudeau unveiled a proposed national handgun ownership freeze in May.

The freeze was announced after two particularly high-profile mass shootings in the United States -- at a Texas elementary school where 21 people, mostly children, were killed; and at a New York state supermarket, where a gunman targeting African Americans killed 10 people.