Canada to increase military spending over the next decade to $32.7 billion
Posted June 7, 2017 7:34 am.
Last Updated June 8, 2017 10:05 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
OTTAWA, ON. (NEWS 1130) – The Trudeau government has outlined the case for billions of dollars in new military spending.
Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan has revealed the government’s defence policy will see an increase in spending of 70 per cent over the next decade from $18.9 billion to $32.7 billion. The minister was questioned why he won’t say where this new money will come from. Sajjan simply repeated that the government will make sure the money is there.
Speaking in Ottawa, Sajjan adds Canada will add hundreds of new elite special forces commandos, wage offensive cyber warfare and deploy armed drones to international battlefields as part of its military response to global security threats.
The new defence review identifies a wide range of harrowing and borderless threats, including the “grey zone” of hybrid warfare, ever-present terrorism and climate change.
The 88 new fighter jets expected to cost between $15 to 19 billion. The government claims it is still committed to open competition to replace CF18 fighter jets.
Some of Canada’s military operations will include government-sanctioned cyber attacks and drone strikes on foreign threats, and an increased the role for special forces in overseas missions.
The review says this new, elite and futuristic approach to war fighting will respect domestic and international laws.
However, the very nature of the secrecy that envelops almost all of Canada’s special forces, as well as the active expansion of fighting in cyberspace will likely raise questions about transparency and civil liberties.
The policy increases the ranks of special forces by 605 people and says they will get new airborne intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance tools.
Today’s announcement comes almost two weeks after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with NATO nations in Brussels.
