With Putin bent on the destruction of Ukrainian culture, that brave nation is fighting to save itself – and in doing so they are fighting for all nations that believe in freedom, democracy and the rule of law. NATO has unified to provide the vital moral, financial and military support required for the Ukrainian people in their struggle. Let's look at the challenges of the tank requirement.
Feb 01
(KEN POLE)
A new paper from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute explores the financial cost of war using links between taxation and defence spending and drawing on data from 100 countries, including Ukraine. It offers evidence to understand how increases in military spending may affect tax structures, but also how low-income, autocratic and conflict-affected countries fund their military spending.
Jan 22
(JAMES FRYER)
(FrontLine)
Will the issue of heavy armour support for Ukraine unite or divide the allies? Will Germany's post-WW2-guilt overpower its modern leadership role in global stability? Is a willing coalition of European neighbours enough to stiffen the German spine?
Jan 15
(JAMES PARKER)
Canada has announced that the Lockheed Martin F-35 has been chosen to replace the aged CF-18s. New kit as major as this should go a long way to boosting recruitment of pilots, aircrew, and aviation technicians. It's time to quickly capitalize on this new recruitment tool.
Feb 07
(CP)
An RCAF CP-140 Aurora maritime patrol and surveillance aircraft headed back to base in Atlantic Canada today after intelligence gathering flights over Haiti. The aircraft was retasked from a U.S.-led counter-narcotics mission and a Canadian Armed Forces official said the data collected over two days would be used by the government “to further assess the situation in Haiti,” which has requested military help in dealing with endemic gang violence.
Feb 07
(CP)
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino told a parliamentary committee February 6 that implementing a registry of foreign agents should be culturally sensitive. “There is a historical context when it comes to some communities within this country and their relationship with agencies and the law-enforcement community,” he said. “We need to be diligent and thoughtful and inclusive when it comes to bringing all Canadians along in the modernization of the tools and the arsenal that we create for our national security and intelligence communities.”
Feb 07
(CP)
As the death toll from the weekend’s earthquakes and aftershocks in Turkey and Syria topped 6,200 today, the Canadian government has committed an initial $10 million to the international relief effort. International Development Minister Harjit Sajjan said further aid and potential deployment of disaster response teams are being considered.
Feb 06
(CP)
The federal government has deployed one of the RCAF’s Lockheed Martin CP-140 Aurora maritime patrol aircraft to Haiti. Capable of flying for 17 hours at a time, it is tasked with providing surveillance and intelligence support for the authorities’ campaign against endemic gang violence which has paralyzed the country for months.
 Collins Aerospace |
 Cleeve Technology Inc. |
 Beretta Defense Technologies / Stoeger Canada |
Jan 22 –
Will the issue of heavy armour support for Ukraine unite or divide the allies? Will Germany's post-WW2-guilt overpower its modern leadership role in global stability? Is a willing coalition of European neighbours enough to stiffen the German spine?
Jan 15 –
Canada has announced that the Lockheed Martin F-35 has been chosen to replace the aged CF-18s. New kit as major as this should go a long way to boosting recruitment of pilots, aircrew, and aviation technicians. It's time to quickly capitalize on this new recruitment tool.
Jan 12
Action on the Arbour Report is likely to begin soon, LGen Michel Maisonneuve and Dr Danic Parenteau provide suggestions for consideration by the different committees engaged in these changes. Read on for clarification, and more details, pursuant to comments received after publishing (Oct 2022) their five general recommendations for any review of the Canadian Military Colleges.
Jan 10 –
This procurement has been politically turbulent for both Liberal and Conservative governments over the years, but Canada has finally announced it will begin taking deliveries of its first 16 F-35 Lightning II fighters in 2026 despite protesters who call for vulnerability in the name of peace.
TBD July/Aug 2023
St John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador
4 February 2023
(CP)
Defence Minister Anita Anand said today that the federal “unequivocally” supports the U.S decision to shoot down a Chinese balloon off the Carolinas after it had transited the continent. She said the balloons’ trajectory over several days “violated U.S. and Canadian airspace and international law.”
4 February 2023
(AP)
A balloon described by the U.S. as a “surveillance” platform and by China as a meteorological “airship” was shot down today off the Carolinas by a U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor. Spotted north of the Aleutian Islands near Alaska January 28, it transited North American airspace at the edge of the stratosphere, well above commercial air traffic corridors. The U.S. Navy and Coast Guard were attempting to cover debris in shallow coastal waters.
3 February 2023
(Defense News)
Bipartisan forces in the U.S. Senate are pressing President Joe Biden to block a $20-billion arms sale to Turkey as long as it continues to block NATO membership for Sweden and Finland. “Once the NATO accession protocols are ratified . . . Congress can consider the sale,” the Senators say in a letter to Biden. “Failure to do so, however, would call into question this pending sale.”
3 February 2023
(AP/WSJ)
Thousands of rifles, machineguns and anti-tank missiles shipped by Iran to Houthi rebels in war-torn Yemen were intercepted by the French navy in the Gulf of Oman last month. Iran did not immediately acknowledge the seizure which was disclosed February 2, but images of the weapons showed they were similar to U.S. interceptions.
3 February 2023
(BBC)
New York-based Chainalysis, which analyzes the cryptocurrency market, reported February 1 that North Korea-backed hackers stole US$1.7 billion in 2022, nearly quadruple their theft in 2021 and accounting for 44 per cent of all cryptocurrency hacks last year. Critics say North Korea uses the proceeds to accelerate nuclear weapons development.
3 February 2023
(Globe & Mail)
Confirmation that Canadian university researchers have collaborated with military scientists in China has prompted Innovation, Science and Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne to promise tighter national-security requirements “shortly.” He also noted, however, that universities are a provincial jurisdiction.
2 February 2023
(Al Jazeera)
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic told his parliament today that he has no plan to join NATO and will remain militarily neutral while maintaining ties with alliance members through weapons procurements. Kosovo and Bosnia & Herzegovina are the only other Balkan states which have not joined NATO.
2 February 2023
(Air Force Times)
The U.S. Air Force believes that a Chinese company’s plans for an agricultural processing plant in North Dakota, 130 kilometres south of the Canadian border, is a “significant threat” to national security. The Fufeng Group’s planned $700-million plant would be 19 km from the Grand Forks Air Force Base, a centre for air and space operations.
2 February 2023
(Defense News)
A Turkish engineering firm has won two contracts worth some €31.5 million to modernize intelligence infrastructure in the NATO Communications and Information Agency. STM says it is one of the largest software development projects assigned by the alliance to a Turkish company.
2 February 2023
(EuroNews)
Swedish Justice Minister Gunnar Strömmer says proposed legislation would restrict activities linked to militant Kurdish groups in the hopes of persuading Turkey’s objections to his country’s bid for NATO membership. “It's a broader criminalisation, targeting a large number of activities within a terrorist organisation that are not concretely connected to a particular terrorist crime,” he said.
2 February 2023
(Al Jazeera)
Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness said February 1 that his government is willing to send troops and police to Haiti as part of a proposed multinational security force. The UN special envoy for Haiti said a week ago that she hoped the Security Council would deal “positively” with the request from Haiti’s government which has been dealing with widespread gang violence.
2 February 2023
(BBC)
Russia President Vladimir Putin today likened his “special military operation” in Ukraine to his country’s fight against German invaders 80 years ago in the Battle of Stalingrad. “We are again being threatened by German . . . tanks,” he said, referring to Leopard tanks being sent to Ukraine by several NATO countries. He also said “those who hope to defeat Russia on the battlefield do not understand . . . that a modern war with Russia . . . won’t be limited to the use of armoured hardware.”
