Canada’s defence plan update prioritizes climate change, misses NATO target
https://tnc.news/2024/04/09/canadas-defence-plan-update/
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a revised defence policy, pledging an additional $73 billion in military spending over the next two decades with a heightened priority on the impacts of climate change.
Despite the investment, the plan falls short of meeting NATO’s 2% GDP spending target, a commitment made by member countries to bolster collective defence capabilities.
Trudeau held a press conference announcing Canada’s updated defence policy on Monday. Defence Minister Bill Blair and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland joined him.
“Canada will invest an additional $8.1 billion over the next five years and approximately $73 billion over the next 20 years,” said Blair.
However, this increase will only elevate Canada’s defence spending to 1.76% of GDP by 2030, below the NATO threshold of 2% agreed upon by allies.
The new spending includes new submarines, long-range missiles, and early-warning aircraft but lacks a plan to reach NATO’s 2% goal. To address modern warfare challenges, the government also plans to enhance intelligence, cybersecurity, and AI capabilities, with significant investments aimed at establishing a Canadian Armed Forces Cyber Command.
The policy, dubbed Our North, Strong and Free, aims to address the evolving security landscape, particularly in the Arctic region.
“We recognize that with climate change, the opening of the Northwest Passage to ship traffic is going to require a lot more capabilities by Canada to demonstrate and responsibly patrol its own internal waters,” he said.
Trudeau added, “The Northwest Passage could become the most efficient shipping route between Europe and Asia by 2050.” Continue…