Canada is preparing to publish a new Arctic Foreign Policy aimed at strengthening its diplomatic and security posture in the North to counter growing threats from foreign actors and climate change, the government announced Thursday.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Melanie Joly said the policy to be released Friday will respond to the growing global threat environment and Canada's responsibility to protect its own Arctic sovereignty and the security of other Arctic countries, as well as the United States .
“One thing is clear: the world is getting harsher and the conflicts we see around the world are linked,” she said. “Therefore, we need to be more robust in our response. »
Friday's announcement will be made by Joly alongside Defense Minister Bill Blair and Northern Affairs Minister Dan Vandal.
The growing presence of Russia and China in the Arctic, facilitated by shrinking sea ice caused by climate change, has been identified as a key security priority for Canada.
The Chief of the Defense Staff of Canada, General Jennie Carignan, told Global News last month that Arctic security is among its top priorities, highlighting increased collaboration between Moscow and Beijing. She said more investment and faster procurement of new technologies was needed to counter these threats.
The federal government has been pushed by the United States to strengthen its position and investments in the North as part of its defense commitments to NATO and NORAD.
Receive national news daily
Get the day's top news, politics, business and current affairs headlines delivered to your inbox once a day.
The updated defense policy includes billions of dollars in new investments in Arctic security, in addition to the nearly $40 billion in previously announced spending on NORAD modernization.
Ottawa's pledge to meet NATO's defense spending target of 2% of GDP by 2032 — a deadline that has been criticized by allies as too long and the Parliamentary Budget Officer as being unrealistic — relies in part on the purchase of a new fleet of submarines to patrol the North. .
Canada signed a trilateral agreement with the United States and Finland in July to boost production of new Arctic and polar icebreakers, and signed a memorandum of understanding last month to strengthen the partnership.
Ways to break the ice were among the topics discussed at Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's dinner with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump last week, according to the Canadian Press.
Canada has no diplomatic or consular presence in the Arctic, but has sought to strengthen ties with Arctic states through forums like the Arctic Council and NATO.
The Canadian Forces use the Canadian Rangers, a reserve force, to patrol remote, coastal and northern regions, with patrols of these reservists. based in dozens of communities across the North and Arctic.
A threat assessment released last week by the Conference of Defense Associations Institute listed climate change; state threats from Russia, China and other countries; and “the erosion of an international order based on the rule of law” as the main threats facing Canada and North America in the Arctic.
The report recommended appointing an “Arctic champion,” similar to the U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Arctic Affairs, to lead and facilitate a new Arctic strategy, while prioritizing modernization and coordination of NORAD with the allies.
He stressed that these threats cannot be resolved by military means alone and called for “a more coordinated and integrated approach.”
“Unfortunately, the Canadian government is not structured to offer an integrated approach to these threats and challenges,” write the authors.
© 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
#Canada #release #Arctic #foreign #policy #39harsher39 #world #Joly #National
Canada,Politics,U.S. News,World,arctic foreign policy,Arctic Security,Canada Arctic,Melanie Joly ,
