Canada's New, Liberal, Defence Policy

[The Bread Guy]

What today's Speech from the Throne (SFT) says about security (and guns) - entire SFT available as attachments here.

 

[The Bread Guy]

Bumped with the latest - interesting choice of Ministers (apart from the DefMin, obviously) to make the announcement ...

Defence Minister Harjit S. Sajjan and Transport Minister Marc Garneau will hold a press conference at the Cartier Square Drill Hall in Ottawa on June 7, 2017, to announce Canada’s new Defence Policy.

Following the announcement, Minister Sajjan, Minister Garneau, and Chief of Defence Staff Jonathan Vance will participate in a Q&A with media.

Media who are unable to attend the press conference in person may join by teleconference. Please note, no questions will be taken from the phone line.

A media lock-up and technical briefing will start at 10:30 a.m. and will be held at the Senior Non-Commissioned Members Mess in Ottawa. Media will be under embargo until the Minister of National Defence commences his remarks at the press conference.

Registration and Entry

Entry to the media lock-up is restricted to journalists who have pre-registered and submitted a signed undertaking. To register for the media lock-up or the teleconference of the press conference, contact the Department of National Defence Media Relations Office at 613-996-2353 or mlo-blm@forces.gc.ca by 5:00 p.m. EDT June 5, 2017. Media attending the lock-up and technical briefing should arrive no later than 10:00 a.m. in order to check in.

Media who do not pre-register will not be allowed entry into the media lock-up.

Set-up of camera equipment will begin at 11:30 a.m. on June 7, 2017, at the Cartier Square Drill Hall.

Event: Media Lock-up and Technical Briefing
Time: Check in begins at 10:00 a.m.; media lock-up will start at 10:30 a.m.
Date: June 7, 2017
Location: Senior Non-Commissioned Members Mess, 4 Queen Elizabeth Dr., Ottawa, ON

Event: Press Conference with Minister Sajjan, Minister Garneau, and Chief of the Defence Staff General Jonathan Vance
Time: 12:30 p.m.
Date: June 7, 2017
Location: Cartier Square Drill Hall, 2 Queen Elizabeth Dr., Ottawa, ON

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op:

 

[SeaKingTacco]

I am curious: why does the Minister of Transport have to be present at a Defence Policy announcement?

 

[Journeyman]

I am curious: why does the Minister of Transport have to be present at a Defence Policy announcement?

Credibility.   

 

[Good2Golf]

I am curious: why does the Minister of Transport have to be present at a Defence Policy announcement?

Spaceman Marc was The Architect's fire-team buddy last time around...experience, perhaps?

G2G

 

[George Wallace]

I am curious: why does the Minister of Transport have to be present at a Defence Policy announcement?

Spaceman Marc was The Architect's fire-team buddy last time around...experience, perhaps?

G2G

Does this also open the door for the rest of the "Public Safety" organizations/Departments/clag?

 

[Oldgateboatdriver]

I am curious: why does the Minister of Transport have to be present at a Defence Policy announcement?

Maybe the Army is finally getting its new trucks.  [

Actually, while there is officially no "Quebec lieutenant" to Trudeau jr., in practice, minister Garneau is everywhere and on about every subject where Quebec is concerned. I don't think the MinDef's French is at a level appropriate to field questions on a subject that complex and delicate to the Quebec press corps.

I also would not be surprised to see Mr. Garneau step into the Defence portfolio if our friendly current MinDef makes any further little slip.

 

[The Bread Guy]

Spaceman Marc was The Architect's fire-team buddy last time around...experience, perhaps?

G2G

Not so long ago ...

 

[Half Full]

Latest Policy paper from Dave Perry.

https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/cdfai/pages/3244/attachments/original/1517275897/Following_the_Funding_in_Strong_Secure_Engaged.pdf?1517275897

This paper hits the nail on the head with respect to the issues we are seeing/having in implementing SSE.

 

[pbi]

There is an opportunity, given Russia's renewed attention to the Arctic, for Prime Minister designate Trudeau to reorient Canada's foreign and defence policies in directions that may please more Canadians than did Prime Minister Harper's:

  First: get out of thew Middle East ~ completely out;

  Second: stay engaged in Eastern Europe with a mix of naval, land and air elements;

  Third: focus more and more attention on the North ~

      a. Commit to defined (larger) number of AOPS and to accelerating the construction of the CCGS John G Diefenbaker;

      b. Increase the number, duration, frequency, intensity and, especially, visibility of Army exercises in the North;

      c. Keep the promise to cancel the F-35 but commit to buying aircraft (fighter/interceptors and long range patrol) that will do better at maintaining sovereignty over the Arctic; and

      d. Commit to an integrated space, air, terrestrial and underwater sensor/warning/communications system to give Canada near real time coverage of all the territory and contiguous waters (and maritime approaches) we claim as our own and the airspace over both.

Having taken part in my first Arctic exercise last year, I agree 100% Given the endless policy-mongering by governments of various stripes over the years, in my opinion we are far, far below even a minimally credible military capability in the North. Tories and Liberals can share the blame quite equally. If you add to that the recent increases in Russia's arctic capabilities, and the very clearly changing climatic conditions up North (sorry climate change deniers but it seems pretty real to me, and it isn't new).

We need to be able to know what''s goimg on in our own country, and be clearly able to do something about it. I see lots of well-intentioned talk, historically and now, but not much that is credible.

 

[Colin Parkinson]

To be fair, Harper brought the North back into the defense conversation, politically he let it slide as it is not a hot issue in vote rich areas which none are in the North. The Vikings also experienced climate change, the only issue there is what is causing it. Fully in agreement we have coasted on the issue since the DEW lines were built.

 

[pbi]

...and since we abandoned CFS Churchill, etc, etc. I wonder what our actual ability to fight in the North is, as opposed to glorified goodwill visits, expensive  photo ops and camping trips with guns. Just asking.

And, while I'm at it, since I was working mostly with various civil folks during the exercise,  I have to say that as far as I can see in general nobody Down South understands or  cares much about the North. Which IMHO is both stupid and sad.

 

[ModlrMike]

When the Russians and Chinese start sailing through the Davis Straight it might get some people's attention. Sadly, I fear it won't.

 

[Oldgateboatdriver]

Funny you should mention that. China just released its Arctic strategy:

http://nationalpost.com/news/canada/declaring-itself-a-near-arctic-state-china-to-drive-a-polar-silk-road-off-canadas-north

However, before every body panics, I invite you to look  at the following comment by Heather Exner-Pirot, editor of the Arctic Yearbook, the article quotes:

Despite its legendary status as the last great world trade route, Canada’s Northwest Passage isn’t actually a great way to cross the Arctic. If China is trying to find a faster way to get container ships to the Atlantic, they would be better served by sailing through Russia’s Northeast Passage.

“People will use (the Northwest Passage) mostly for destinational shipping; going there to get resources or drop off supplies, then leaving,” said Exner-Pirot.

She added that the vast majority of China’s Arctic spending “has been taking place in Russia’s Arctic with Russia and Russian companies.”

And there is good reason for that. I truly wish people trying to comment on the Arctic would get themselves globes instead of maps. Looking at a globe, you can see that, as a "short cut" between Asia and Europe, it is a lot shorter (by 1200 NM for the leg from passing through the Bearing strait to Amsterdam) to go by way of the North East passage, just to the North of Russia, than through the North West passage.

If one such passage is open to navigation, so is the other one.

That, BTW, is the reason for Russia's Arctic expansion of its military: to provide for the protection of their own waters and territory (that at their closest point, are still more than a 1000 Km from Canada's territory) - not because the Russian hordes are coming over an ocean (the Arctic ocean) that is three times the size of the Mediterranean sea just for the fun of coming into our Archipelago.

That does not absolve Canada from getting the means of knowing what is going on in our side of the Arctic.

One important aspect to note is China's recognition of international law in the Arctic.

I will repeat again here my personal view: The faster Canada abandons its, IMHO, ridiculous position that everything within our Arctic archipelago is "internal" waters (on the fallacious claim that when frozen, the Inuits travel by foot over it so it's like "land") and acts on the basis of international law as regards Territorial Sea, Exclusive Economic Zone and International Straits, the better things will be.

The US Coast Guard has already started to set up a non-reporting separation scheme in the Bearing strait to assist commercial transits. In my mind, it is important that Canada follow suit, and do one better, by setting up a reporting traffic control scheme for the North-West passage and set up inspection stations at both ends for pollution control (and just about everybody in the world seem to agree that the Arctic ecosystem must be protected). This would do more for our sovereignty than the current ridiculous claim, especially since it is completely unsupported on the ground (or ice  ).

 

[daftandbarmy]

Funny you should mention that. China just released its Arctic strategy:

http://nationalpost.com/news/canada/declaring-itself-a-near-arctic-state-china-to-drive-a-polar-silk-road-off-canadas-north

However, before every body panics, I invite you to look  at the following comment by Heather Exner-Pirot, editor of the Arctic Yearbook, the article quotes:

Despite its legendary status as the last great world trade route, Canada’s Northwest Passage isn’t actually a great way to cross the Arctic. If China is trying to find a faster way to get container ships to the Atlantic, they would be better served by sailing through Russia’s Northeast Passage.

“People will use (the Northwest Passage) mostly for destinational shipping; going there to get resources or drop off supplies, then leaving,” said Exner-Pirot.

She added that the vast majority of China’s Arctic spending “has been taking place in Russia’s Arctic with Russia and Russian companies.”

And there is good reason for that. I truly wish people trying to comment on the Arctic would get themselves globes instead of maps. Looking at a globe, you can see that, as a "short cut" between Asia and Europe, it is a lot shorter (by 1200 NM for the leg from passing through the Bearing strait to Amsterdam) to go by way of the North East passage, just to the North of Russia, than through the North West passage.

If one such passage is open to navigation, so is the other one.

That, BTW, is the reason for Russia's Arctic expansion of its military: to provide for the protection of their own waters and territory (that at their closest point, are still more than a 1000 Km from Canada's territory) - not because the Russian hordes are coming over an ocean (the Arctic ocean) that is three times the size of the Mediterranean sea just for the fun of coming into our Archipelago.

That does not absolve Canada from getting the means of knowing what is going on in our side of the Arctic.

One important aspect to note is China's recognition of international law in the Arctic.

I will repeat again here my personal view: The faster Canada abandons its, IMHO, ridiculous position that everything within our Arctic archipelago is "internal" waters (on the fallacious claim that when frozen, the Inuits travel by foot over it so it's like "land") and acts on the basis of international law as regards Territorial Sea, Exclusive Economic Zone and International Straits, the better things will be.

The US Coast Guard has already started to set up a non-reporting separation scheme in the Bearing strait to assist commercial transits. In my mind, it is important that Canada follow suit, and do one better, by setting up a reporting traffic control scheme for the North-West passage and set up inspection stations at both ends for pollution control (and just about everybody in the world seem to agree that the Arctic ecosystem must be protected). This would do more for our sovereignty than the current ridiculous claim, especially since it is completely unsupported on the ground (or ice  ).

And this bunch of fun is only a short hop away:

The Northern Fleet is headquartered at Severomorsk, at the top of the Kola Peninsula near Murmansk, with additional home ports at Kola, Motovskiy, Gremikha, and Ura Guba. The mission of the Northern Fleet is to defend Russia's far northwestern Arctic region surrounding the Kola Peninsula. The fleet provides home ports for thirty-seven nuclear submarines, twenty-two other submarines, forty-seven principal surface combatants, and ten coastal and smaller ships. The naval aviation contingent includes a complement of twenty Su-39 fixed-wing aircraft and ten antisubmarine warfare helicopters on board the Admiral Kuznetsov , which heads the air defense of the Barents Sea. Shore-based naval aviation includes 200 combat aircraft and sixty-four helicopters. The Northern Fleet has two naval infantry brigades, one coastal defense regiment, and an air defense missile regiment.

Situated between the Barents and White Seas just east of Norway and Finland, Murmansk was selected as the base for the Northern Fleet because it lies at the end of the Gulf Stream and is Russia's only port with unrestricted year-round access to the Atlantic. Russian naval officers monitoring the Barents Sea near the northern town of Murmansk have an English phrase to help them figure out what to say if someone unexpectedly shows up in their the territory. They can chose from one four possibilities: 1) YOU ARE ARRESTED; 2) I AM SEARCHING FOR THE SPACESHIP IN DISTRESS; 3) ARIEL BOMBING IS BEING CARRIED OUT IN THIS ZONE and 4) WE ARE GLAD TO BID YOU WELCOME ON OUR HOSPITABLE SOVIET SOIL AN WISH YOU EVERY SUCCESS. [Source: National Geographic, Miles Clark, June 1994].

http://factsanddetails.com/russia/Government_Military_Crime/sub9_5b/entry-5208.html