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  December 20, 2019 | Local, Other Defence

  Canadian Forces had valuable ‘insights’ in Afghanistan, defence minister says following damning U.S. report

  By Charlie Pinkerton. Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan says Canadian Forces deployed to Afghanistan contributed useful insights to American forces, whose past military operations in the country have drawn new scrutiny following The Washington Post's publication of the so-called Afghanistan Papers. The documents obtained and published by the Post are the product of hundreds of interviews carried out by the special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction (SIGAR). SIGAR was mandated to complete a series of reports exploring the effectiveness of its nearly two-decade, close to trillion-dollar mission that it began as a retaliation against al-Qaeda for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. The documents fought for in court by the Post include notes, transcripts and audio recordings that the subjects had been promised would not be made public by the government. They provide a thorough look at the frustrations and concerns of top U.S. brass and a lack of understanding of the conflict by the American military and its government. One of the revelations of the Afghanistan Papers is the that as the conflict continued, top American military officials considered it an unwinnable conflict. Sajjan completed three Afghanistan tours, where he worked in intelligence before working directly with top American troops as an adviser. In giving his take on how the Canadian perspective compared to that of the Americans during the mission, Sajjan said the Canadian Armed Forces had a better understanding of the realities of the conflict than its closest allies. READ MORE: A year-end Q&A with Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan “I would say the insights the Canadians provided were actually very useful. That's one point that I'm trying to get across here, and I appreciate the Americans coming out and talking about this now,” Sajjan said. “Canadians were providing a very good perspective, very early on, to have a much more, I would say, accurate account of what is happening,” One passage the Post highlighted from the thousands of pages of documents to underscore the discontent with the conflict by U.S. officials was an interview with Douglas Lute, a former top army general who became an adviser on the Afghan war in the White House. “We were devoid of a fundamental understanding of Afghanistan — we didn't know what we were doing,” Lute said. “What are we trying to do here? We didn't have the foggiest notion of what we were undertaking.” Sajjan said good decisions were made only with an “accurate” and “good understanding” of the Afghanistan conflict. From 2001 to 2014, 40,000 Canadians served in Afghanistan. There were 158 Canadian soldiers killed. On top of its military effort, Canada has provided more than $3 billion in international assistance to Afghanistan since 2001. In talking about Canada's operations in Afghanistan, Sajjan also defended well-known Canadian-led aspects of the mission, such as the Operational Mentoring and Liaison Team (OMLT, but known colloquially as omelette) and its stabilization-focused whole-of-government approach to the conflict. “What I'm trying to say here is that the work that Canada did there was highly valued and I appreciate other allies coming out with different perspectives,” Sajjan said. https://ipolitics.ca/2019/12/19/canadian-forces-had-valuable-insights-in-afghanistan-defence-minister-says-following-damning-u-s-report/

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  October 25, 2019 | Local, Aerospace, Naval, Land, C4ISR, Security

  Analysis: Defence issues could be on the back burner as minority Liberal government focuses on survival

  DAVID PUGLIESE, OTTAWA CITIZEN As the Trudeau government focuses on its survival and seeking political support from potential allies like the NDP or the Greens, key defence issues could be put on the back burner or become part of any backroom quid pro quo. Dealing with health care, affordable housing, pipelines, the environment and healing rifts with Alberta and Saskatchewan are expected to be just some of the top issues facing the minority Liberal government. Chief of the Defence Staff Gen. Jon Vance has been telling headquarters staff in Ottawa that with the world becoming more dangerous he expects a steady flow of funding for the Canadian Forces to continue. That, however, isn't a given. Some of the Liberal's election promises come with a steep cost, including the $6 billion needed to be set aside for the first four years of a pharmacare program and a plan to improve access to medical services. Defence and security issues were barely mentioned during the federal election campaign, even though billions of dollars in equipment purchases will need to be approved by the government in the coming years. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau backed away Wednesday from forming a coalition with one of the opposition parties, but he did emphasis collaborating with the other party leaders on various issues. That could open the potential to work together on certain defence files. The Liberals have talked about using more Canadian military resources to deal with climate-related disasters and to provide help to poorer nations dealing with the effects of climate change. Those are initiatives both the Greens and the NDP could get behind as they mirror proposals from those parties. The NDP has also stated it wants a fair competition for new fighter jets and to keep the multi-billion dollar shipbuilding procurement on schedule. The Green Party more generally has supported a well-equipped Canadian military but hasn't gone into details. Bloc leader Yves François Blanchet has said his priority is not sovereignty but to promote Quebec interests. That includes a push to see Davie Shipbuilding in Levis, Que., named as the third yard under the federal shipbuilding strategy. The Bloc's wishes coincide with the Liberal's efforts to steer more shipbuilding work toward Davie. The politics of a minority government could also come into play on the project to acquire a future fighter jet. Although the Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighter is now seen as the leading candidate, an aerospace union is raising warnings that the selection of that plane could mean large-scale job losses in Quebec. In early September the Machinists Union complained that the Liberal government bowed to pressure from the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump to change rules to keep the F-35 in the procurement race but at the expense of other firms offering guaranteed work for Canada's aerospace sector. The union is worried that if Canada were to purchase the F-35 then most of the long-term maintenance would be done in the U.S. That, noted the labour organization, would put in jeopardy the 600 jobs at L-3 Harris in Montreal that are linked to maintaining the Royal Canadian Air Force's current CF-18 fleet. “We will follow the situation closely and demand that manufacturing and maintenance activities of the next fighter aircraft take place in Quebec,” said David Chartrand, the Quebec co-ordinator of the Machinists Union. Any loss of 600 jobs in Quebec is bound to get the attention of the Bloc Québécois and cause problems for the Liberals. Trudeau also said Wednesday he would swear in a new gender-balanced cabinet on Nov. 20. Trudeau will be in need of experienced ministers in various high-profile cabinet positions, so there is a strong possibility Harjit Sajjan, who served as defence minister, and Carla Qualtrough, the procurement minister, might end up in new portfolios. There have been suggestions at National Defence headquarters that Liberal MP Karen McCrimmon, a retired air force officer who won re-election in Kanata-Carleton, could be a potential candidate for the defence portfolio. McCrimmon, a former lieutenant colonel, was the first woman in Canada to qualify as an air navigator and the first to command an air force squadron. Such a choice would meet Trudeau's needs for a female cabinet member with experience in the portfolio. https://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/defence-watch/analysis-defence-issues-could-be-on-the-back-burner-as-minority-liberal-government-focuses-on-survival

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  May 31, 2023 | Local, Other Defence

  Government of Canada helping defence industry protect itself from cyber security threats

  May 31, 2023 - Ottawa, Ontario - Public Services and Procurement Canada  The Government of Canada is committed to implementing robust cyber security measures, which are fundamental to Canada’s economic stability and national security. Today, the Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of National Defence, on behalf of the Honourable Helena Jaczek, Minister of Public Services and Procurement, announced that the Government of Canada will develop and implement a Canadian program for cyber security certification that will result in mandatory certification requirements in select federal defence contracts as early as winter 2024.  Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC), in partnership with National Defence and the Standards Council of Canada, will lead the Government of Canada’s efforts to establish this new program. Engagement sessions with the defence industry and other key stakeholders are expected to begin in late 2023. Canada’s defence industry is subject to frequent malicious cyber activities targeting contractors and subcontractors, threatening the protection of unclassified federal information. To protect supply chains critical to Canada’s defence, it is imperative that Canada acts on the matter.  Without certification, Canadian suppliers risk being excluded from future international defence procurement opportunities. The new program will aim to reduce industry burden by pursuing mutual recognition between Canada and the U.S., allowing certified Canadian suppliers to be recognized in both jurisdictions.  Quotes “Threats to cyber security are complex and rapidly evolving, and in the world of defence procurement, cyber incidents pose a threat to the protection of unclassified federal information. That’s why we are taking action to protect our defence supply chain by establishing a Canadian Program for Cyber Security Certification to protect Canadians and Canadian businesses.” The Honourable Helena Jaczek Minister of Public Services and Procurement  “Cyber security is national security. In government and in the private sector, we must adapt our practices to the changing security environment. Today, we are presenting a plan to improve the resiliency of our defence supply chains. The Canadian Program for Cyber Security Certification will help ensure that the Canadian Armed Forces have the secure tools that they need to meet their operational demands, today and into the future. Because this certification will increase the trust in the resiliency of Canadian suppliers, our world-class defence industry will also benefit, and be in an even better position to access procurement opportunities with our closest allies.” The Honourable Anita Anand Minister of National Defence  “With this new certification, we are protecting our critical supply chains, and ensuring Canadian suppliers can continue to play a key role in the U.S. defence procurement supply chains as it is critical to grow our industry and to create jobs and prosperity for workers across Canada.” The Honourable François-Philippe Champagne Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry Quick facts As part of Budget 2023, the Government of Canada allocated $25 million over 3 years for the creation of a new Canadian Program for Cyber Security Certification for defence procurement. The new Canadian Program for Cyber Security Certification will help to maintain Canadian companies’ access to international procurement opportunities with Canada’s close allies and partners, where mandatory cyber security certification is required. Increasing the cyber security resilience of the Government of Canada’s defence industrial base will reinforce the goals of Canada’s National Cyber Security Action Plan and National Cyber Security Strategy. The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security’s National Cyber Threat Assessment for 2023-24 assesses that Canadian organizations will continue to be targeted by malicious cyber threat activity by state-sponsored actors over the next 2 years. The Canadian Program for Cyber Security Certification will verify and strengthen the cyber security measures Canadian defence companies are taking to protect their networks, systems and applications. Associated links Budget 2023: A Made-In-Canada Plan https://www.canada.ca/en/public-services-procurement/news/2023/05/government-of-canada-helping-defence-industry-protect-itself-from-cyber-security-threats.html