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David Scanlon Defence Watch Guest Writer Recent news reports have shown the Canadian Armed Forces are struggling to define ethical boundaries as they expand their capability to meet the rising threats of the information age. A global information war is now being fought in a “grey zone” where malign state and non-state actors are trying to sow confusion and division across the international community. American professor of strategy and author Sean McFate writes that future military victories “will be won and lost in the information space, not on the physical battlefield.” But he warns that “some democracies may be tempted to sacrifice their values in the name of victory.” Recent mishaps by Canada's military underscore this temptation. In April, the Ottawa Citizen published this headline: “Canadian Forces ‘information operations' pandemic campaign quashed after details revealed to top general.” The article reported that the “IO” campaign was targeted at Canadians and “called for ‘shaping' and ‘exploiting' information” with the aim of maintaining civil order and ensuring “public compliance with suppression measures” during the coronavirus pandemic. A parallel effort involved the “data mining” of personal social media accounts in Ontario by a team assigned to military intelligence. The military shared data with the province, including findings that some of its citizens were unhappy about its response to the pandemic. Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan ordered a review of the information operations campaign and an investigation into the legality of the data-mining activities. Given the Canadian Armed Forces were tasked with helping the provinces of Quebec and Ontario deal with the cruel impact of the coronavirus in long-term care homes, it is disquieting that such a campaign would be contemplated, let alone put in writing. Chief of the defence staff General Jon Vance reportedly avowed that, “as long as he was in charge information operations tactics wouldn't be used in a domestic situation, except in the case where an enemy had invaded the country.” Despite the defence chief's promise, only six months later the armed forces were caught conducting a disinformation campaign on Canada's Atlantic coast. Under the headline, “Canadian Soldiers Cry Wolf, Alarming Residents,” the New York Times reported that a military psychological training exercise had “gone wrong,” and that a “fake disinformation exercise had become a real one.” For reasons as yet unexplained, military personnel circulated a forged letter from the province of Nova Scotia warning certain residents to be wary of a wandering wolfpack, backed by loudspeakers blaring the sounds of growling wolves. It took some time for the armed forces to accept responsibility and apologize. Meanwhile, baffled local officials assured affected residents the province had not issued the letter and there were no wolves in the area. The defence minister rightly supports training the military “on how best to respond to foreign actors who use influence activities.” But to avoid further mistakes he ordered such training paused until an investigation into the wayward wolfpacks was concluded. Emma Briant, a US-based British academic and author who specializes in propaganda and political communication, told the New York Times she finds the recent incidents “appalling,” a “failure of governance,” a “failure to ensure restraint,” and a “failure to ensure ethics are built into training and planning operations.” “They seem to have introduced a policy of weaponization of influence, domestically,” Briant observes. Instead, she advises, Canada's military needs to be building “a relationship of trust with the public.” The military's pattern of ethical breaches appears to reveal an embedded operational mindset fixed on tactics, as opposed to a strategic one focussed on building public trust. British military historian Hew Strachan wrote that armed forces are attracted to the operational level of war, as opposed to the strategic. It allows them to “appropriate what they see as the acme of their professional competence,” enabling them to operate in “a politics free zone.” This may in part explain General Vance's decision in 2015 to “operationalize” the military's public affairs branch, which is responsible for public communication. The branch was seen as not delivering tangible “effects” in support of so-called “operations in the information environment.” By operationalizing a strategic function like public affairs, the military was in effect reducing it to an operational or tactical capability, like special operations forces or precision-guided missiles. Ostensibly, these can deliver precise, tangible “effects” under direct military control. Some of the perils of this new approach were exposed when a senior public affairs officer, Brig.-Gen Jay Janzen (then a colonel), began using his Twitter account to target journalists, commentators, and politicians. In April 2018, for instance, he sparked a heated Twitter exchange with opposition defence critic James Bezan. The defence committee had been debating a military deployment to Mali to help defeat cancerous African offshoots of ISIS and al-Qaeda. Janzen tweeted that questions about the mission from opposition Members of Parliament were “nonsensical.” He even proposed “better” questions for opposition parties to ask. For a serving senior officer to publicly criticize elected officials was unprecedented. Government ministers must have been perplexed to see a high-ranking service member tweeting better debate questions to opposition MPs. Janzen's tweets, which appear to have at least the tacit approval of his superiors, set an example for other service members. Another perplexing public information moment occurred last April when the Canadian military reported that a Canadian frigate patrolling off the Greek coast had “lost contact” with its Cyclone maritime helicopter. It was later revealed the helicopter was moments from landing on the ship when, as the CBC reported, “it went down in full view of horrified shipmates.” Tragically, all six aboard the Cyclone were killed in the crash. The military was widely criticized for misrepresenting the facts—contact was in fact never “lost” and officials failed to explain the miscommunication. Some practitioners of public affairs and information operations have been telling their military bosses that with scientific techniques like “target audience analysis” they can change people's perceptions and behaviours with astounding precision. Canada's defence department recently paid over a million dollars to Emic Consulting Limited (whose founder worked at the UK's controversial and now defunct Strategic Communication Laboratories) to teach public affairs officers and others how to conduct “actor and audience analysis” and otherwise weaponize behavioural science. But is this training being misapplied? One aim of information operations is to change the perceptions and behaviours of target audiences using a range of influence techniques, including “psychological” and “deception” operations. As the defence chief alluded, such techniques should not be approved for use in Canada, other than in exceptional circumstances against clearly defined foes, such as terrorists. Military public affairs, by contrast, is about ensuring Canada's armed forces follow federal communications policy, which calls for maintaining “public trust,” and directs that federal communications “must be objective, factual, non-partisan, clear, and written in plain language.” In a free and democratic society, public trust is a priceless strategic “effect.” As malign actors seek to create confusion and division, Canadians need trusted sources of information. Surveys consistently show that Canadians trust their military. Military leaders and their public affairs advisors must preserve this trust. As called for in defence policy, Canada's armed forces do need the tools to wage information and cyber warfare. They are already facing such threats on missions overseas. But the armed forces also need the tools to communicate with Canadians and other friendly audiences in a timely, truthful, and accurate fashion. Transparency is a potent democratic deterrent against disinformation. Informed by the investigations into recent mishaps, the defence minister and chief of the defence staff should consider the following: o To ensure that information operations have proper approvals and oversight, and are conducted ethically, robust policy, doctrine, and governance are essential. o To ensure broad awareness of ethical considerations when conducting influence activities, related training and education needs to be incorporated at all rank levels. o To explain their actions and help build public trust, the armed forces need to field uniformed spokespersons more often. (The military's “chief spokesman” cited by the New York Times in the “wolves” story was a civilian.) o To ensure coherent doctrine and effective implementation of information-related capabilities, a professional total force cadre of practitioners should be created. o Military public affairs must be reinvigorated as a strategic capability that promotes transparency, provides unhindered advice to commanders at all levels, and ensures close coordination with the civilian communication arms of government. o Policy and doctrine, along with leaders, operators, and information practitioners, must clearly differentiate between activities intended to inform Canadians, such as public affairs, and information operations designed to influence or deceive adversaries. Fighting disinformation is a serious whole-of-nation challenge. It requires an informed public, ethical and transparent government, an engaged private sector, a vigorous and valued free press, and armed forces that respect and reflect Canadian values. https://www.thechronicleherald.ca/news/canada/fight-the-information-war-without-sacrificing-canadian-values-513691/

David Pugliese Two reports by the parliamentary budget officer looking into the costs of major Canadian naval equipment projects have been delayed. The Commons Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates had unanimously passed a motion in June to request the Office of the Parliamentary Budget Officer undertake a costing analysis of the Royal Canadian Navy's new joint support ships as well as the leasing of the Asterix supply ship from a private firm. The PBO study was to also look at the cost of building the joint support ships in Canada at Seaspan shipyard in Vancouver. The committee asked that the PBO report be provided by Oct. 15. Another motion from the committee, passed later in June, asked the PBO to examine the $60 billion price tag of Canada's proposed new fleet of warships – the Canadian Surface Combatant or CSC. Parliamentary Budget Officer Yves Giroux was tasked to investigate the cost of the CSC as well as examine the cost of two other types of warships: the FREMM and the Type 31. That study was supposed to be presented to the committee by Oct. 22. But those original motions from the committee expired when Parliament was prorogued. So new motions have to be provided to the PBO. The Commons committee passed a new motion on Oct. 19 on the Asterix and Joint Support Ship analysis. That analysis is to be delivered by Nov. 30, PBO spokeswoman Sloane Mask told this newspaper. A date for the analysis to be made public has not yet been determined. “Currently, we are also in the process of confirming the revised timelines for the CSC report,” she added.There is particular interest in the defence community about what the PBO determines is the current price-tag of the Canadian Surface Combatant project. Last year the Liberal government signed an initial deal on CSC that is expected to lead to the eventual construction of 15 warships in the largest single government purchase in Canadian history. Lockheed Martin offered Canada the Type 26 warship designed by BAE in the United Kingdom. Irving is the prime contractor and the vessels will be built at its east coast shipyard. Construction of the first ship isn't expected to begin until the early 2020s. But the Canadian Surface Combatant program has already faced rising costs. In 2008, the then-Conservative government estimated the project would cost roughly $26 billion. But in 2015, Vice-Admiral Mark Norman, then commander of the navy, voiced concern that taxpayers may not have been given all the information about the program, publicly predicting the cost for the warships alone would approach $30 billion. The overall project is currently estimated to cost around $60 billion. “Approximately one-half of the CSC build cost is comprised of labour in the (Irving) Halifax yard and materials,” according to federal government documents obtained by this newspaper through the Access to Information law. But some members of parliament and industry representatives have privately questioned whether the CSC price-tag is too high. There have been suggestions that Canada could dump the Type 26 design and go for a cheaper alternative since the CSC project is still in early stages and costs to withdraw could be covered by savings from a less expensive ship. Canada had already been pitched on alternatives. In December 2017, the French and Italian governments proposed a plan in which Canada could build the FREMM frigate at Irving. Those governments offered to guarantee the cost of the 15 ships at a fixed $30 billion, but that was rejected by the Canadian government. The other type of warship the PBO will look at is the Type 31, which is to be built for the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. Those ships are to cost less than $500 million each. In 2017, then Parliamentary Budget Officer Jean-Denis Fréchette estimated the CSC program would cost $61.82 billion. The entry of the BAE Type 26 warship in the Canadian competition was controversial from the start and sparked complaints that the procurement process was skewed to favour that vessel. Previously the Liberal government had said only mature existing designs or designs of ships already in service with other navies would be accepted on the grounds they could be built faster and would be less risky. Unproven designs can face challenges if problems are found once the vessel is in the water and operating. But the criteria was changed and the government and Irving accepted the BAE design, though at the time it existed only on the drawing board. Construction began on the first Type 26 frigate in the summer of 2017 for Britain's Royal Navy. https://www.thechronicleherald.ca/news/canada/defence-watch-new-dates-set-for-budget-watchdogs-reports-on-major-naval-projects-512897/

Canadian company says it only recently became aware the engines were powering military UAVs Levon Sevunts Bombardier Recreational Products (BRP) says it has suspended the delivery of aircraft engines to "countries with unclear usage" in the wake of reports that some of those engines are being used on Turkish combat drones deployed by Azerbaijan in fighting against Armenian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh. The Quebec-based company — better known for its Ski-Doo and Lynx snowmobiles — said it became aware late last week that some of the recreational aircraft engines produced by its Austrian subsidiary, Rotax, are being used on Turkish Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). "We have recently been made aware that some Rotax engines are currently used in military UAVs, and have started a thorough investigation immediately," Martin Langelier, BPR's senior vice president and the company's spokesperson, told Radio Canada International in an email statement. "In the meantime, we are suspending delivery of aircraft engines in countries with unclear usage." Export controls and 'civilian' tech Langelier said that all Rotax aircraft engines are designed and produced in Austria exclusively for civilian purposes and are certified for civilian use only. Canada suspended most exports of defence technology to Turkey in October of 2019 following the Turkish invasion of northwestern Syria. Michel Cimpaye, a spokesperson for Global Affairs Canada, said exports of items on the country's Export Control List require a permit only when exported from Canada. Controlled goods and technology exported from another country, however, are subject to the export controls of that country, Cimpaye added. Gabriele Juen, a spokesperson for the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the Rotax engines are used in various motorsports and drones could be used "for a multitude of solely civilian purposes." "The European Union Control List of Dual Use Items does not list the drone engine in question as a dual use good item," Juen said. "As a consequence, no approval permit is required under Austrian legislation that regulates the export of defence-related goods." A loophole in arms control regimes Kelsey Gallagher is a researcher with the disarmament group Project Ploughshares who has studied Canadian exports of drone technology to Turkey. Gallagher said the matter of BRP recreational aircraft engines ending up on Turkish combat drones exposes a serious flaw in international arms control regimes. "I think this speaks to the fact that components such as engines should more frequently fall under regulations that we see for what we deem to be more conventional weapons," he said. "Frequently, engines are not controlled as weapons systems even though they are integral, like other components, to the operation of a vehicle." The Bayraktar TB2 drones also feature optical sensors and target designation systems produced by L3 Harris WESCAM in Burlington, Ont. On Monday, defence officials in Armenia displayed what they claimed are parts of a Bayraktar TB2 drone and its Canadian-made optical and target acquisition systems, as well as its Rotax engine. A spokesperson for the Armenian Ministry of Defence said another Turkish Bayraktar TB2 drone was shot down by Armenian air defence units during fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh on Thursday. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has called on countries that supply components for the Turkish drone program to follow Canada's example and suspend all exports of such components to Turkey. Fighting in the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, which is populated by ethnic Armenians, began on Sept. 27. It's the most significant outburst of violence since a Russian-brokered ceasefire paused hostilities in 1994. Armenia has repeatedly accused Turkey of supplying Azerbaijan with arms — including drones and F-16 fighter jets — as well as military advisers and jihadist Syrian mercenaries taking part in the fighting. Armenian officials also have accused Azerbaijan of using the Turkish drones to not only target military forces but also to conduct strikes against civilian infrastructure across Nagorno-Karabakh and in Armenia proper. Turkey and Azerbaijan have denied these reports. The Turkish embassy did not respond to a request for comment Officials at Global Affairs Canada said they are investigating allegations regarding the possible use of Canadian technology in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and "will continue to assess the situation." Foreign Affairs Minister François-Philippe Champagne suspended the export permits for WESCAM optical sensors and target acquisition systems on Oct. 6. However, senior Global Affairs officials speaking at Thursday's briefing for MPs on the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh could not explain why an exemption was made for these exports in the first place, given the embargo announced in 2019 and renewed in April of this year. Appearing before the standing committee on foreign affairs and international development, Shalini Anand, acting director general for export controls at Global Affairs Canada, said she could not discuss the issue of the permits because of "commercial confidentiality." Prime Minister Justin Trudeau specifically discussed the issue of WESCAM exports to Turkey with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a phone conversation in April, according to sources who spoke with Radio Canada International on condition of anonymity. The issue was discussed again during their phone conversation on Oct. 16, according to the Prime Minister's Office. https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/turkey-armenia-azerbaijan-drones-bombardier-1.5775350

Saab and the Consortium for Research and Innovation in Aerospace in Quebec (CRIAQ) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU). Saab and the Consortium for Research and Innovation in Aerospace in Quebec (CRIAQ) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU). The partnership agreement is expected to boost collaboration with Canadian industry, universities and other research organisations. CRIAQ CEO Alain Aubertin said: “We are very pleased with this signing as we continue to develop our aerospace industry, adding a new global player to our ecosystem. “I am convinced that CRIAQ's academic, industrial and SME community, and the Quebec economy as well, will clearly benefit from this international collaboration.” This agreement also deepens the commitments of Saab to the Industrial and Technological Benefits (ITB) Policy of Canada in the future. Introduced in 2014, ITB is an economic commitment made by bidders to the country. It requires companies that are awarded defence procurement projects in invest and undertake business activity in the country. In July 2019, Saab submitted a proposal to include 88 Gripen E fighters for Canada's Future Fighter Capability Project (FFCP). Saab Aeronautics business area vice-president and head Jonas Hjelm said: “The quality and breadth of aerospace research and innovation in Canada is globally recognised, with the Quebec region home to many excellent companies and institutions. https://www.airforce-technology.com/news/saab-signs-partnership-agreement-with-canadas-criaq/

Développement économique Canada pour les régions du Québec accorde 650 000 dollars à l'entreprise de Bromont pour l'acquisition de matériel à la fine pointe de la technologie. Bromont, Québec, 23 octobre 2020 – Développement économique Canada pour les régions du Québec (DEC) Fondée en 2010, Solaxis Ingéniosité Manufacturière inc. se spécialise dans la fabrication additive (impression 3D) de pièces thermoplastiques d'ingénierie avancée. Ses principaux clients, situés au Canada et aux États-Unis, œuvrent dans les secteurs du transport terrestre, de l'aéronautique, de la défense et de la sécurité. Depuis peu, l'entreprise fabrique aussi des pièces médicales en lien avec la présente crise sanitaire. Solaxis s'est vu accorder une contribution remboursable de 650 000 dollars par DEC, tel qu'annoncé aujourd'hui par Élisabeth Brière, secrétaire parlementaire de la ministre du Développement économique et des Langues officielles (Agence de développement économique du Canada pour les régions du Québec) et Lyne Bessette, députée de Brome—Missisquoi. Gr'ce à ce financement, Solaxis pourra accroître sa capacité de production par l'acquisition d'équipement et de matériel informatique à la fine pointe de la technologie. En misant sur la numérisation et l'automatisation de ses procédés, qui passent notamment par l'impression 3D, Solaxis se positionne comme un joueur clé dans son domaine. L'entreprise vise à combler le vide qui existe dans l'industrie entre le prototypage de très bas volume et les procédés de formage avec outillage de grandes séries à haut volume. L'acquisition de technologies d'impression 3D ouvertes et innovantes lui permettra d'augmenter jusqu'à 25 fois sa cadence de production mensuelle. Les procédés avancés et les technologies de fabrication additive de pointe, tels que l'impression 3D, sont de plus en plus adoptés par les industries. L'utilisation de ces technologies contribue à l'implantation d'une fabrication centrée sur l'utilisateur. La crise de la COVID-19 a d'ailleurs encouragé bon nombre d'entreprises manufacturières à adopter ces procédés dans leurs activités de fabrication, contribuant à améliorer leur efficacité de production et ainsi mieux répondre aux besoins des marchés. Véritable moteur économique, l'innovation est la clé du succès puisqu'elle génère la croissance dont profitent les entreprises et les collectivités. Le gouvernement du Canada tient à appuyer les entreprises innovantes afin qu'elles puissent compter sur des ressources adéquates pour créer de nouveaux produits et les commercialiser, et ainsi contribuer à la création de bons emplois dans les régions du Québec. Citations « En soutenant Solaxis, le gouvernement du Canada permet à l'entreprise de se doter de l'équipement nécessaire au développement de technologies et de procédés novateurs. Les entreprises comme Solaxis, qui misent sur l'innovation, contribuent à améliorer et à relancer l'économie canadienne en cette période marquée par la rupture et le changement. » Élisabeth Brière, secrétaire parlementaire de la ministre du Développement économique et des Langues officielles (Agence de développement économique du Canada pour les régions du Québec) « Solaxis fait partie des entreprises qui misent sur l'implantation de technologies avant-gardistes pour créer davantage de richesse et maintenir des emplois de qualité à Bromont. C'est gr'ce au succès d'entreprises audacieuses et innovantes comme celle‑ci que nous pouvons assurer la prospérité économique de la région et de tout le Québec. » Lyne Bessette, députée de Brome—Missisquoi « En ces temps de crise sans précédent, nous sommes là pour appuyer les PME canadiennes et les travailleurs à s'adapter au contexte changeant. Développement économique Canada pour les régions du Québec soutient les entreprises qui misent sur l'innovation, moteurs de la relance économique. En appuyant Solaxis, notre objectif est de collaborer avec une entreprise qui crée de bons emplois en région et qui contribue à la compétitivité de notre économie canadienne. » L'honorable Mélanie Joly, députée d'Ahuntsic‑Cartierville, ministre du Développement économique et des Langues officielles et ministre responsable de DEC https://www.canada.ca/fr/developpement-economique-regions-quebec/nouvelles/2020/10/solaxis-pourra-augmenter-sa-cadence-de-production-grace-a-lappui-du-gouvernement-du-canada.html

OTTAWA - Canada has taken a big leap closer to meeting its promise to the NATO military alliance to spend a larger share of its economy on defence thanks to an unexpected assist from COVID-19. New NATO figures released Wednesday show that largely thanks to the pandemic, Canada is poised to spend the equivalent of more of its gross domestic product on defence this year than at any point in the past decade. That is because the alliance expects the Liberal government to hold Canadian defence spending steady even as COVID-19 batters the country's economic output. Yet defence analyst David Perry of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute says the results are unlikely to appease the United States, as Canada continues to fall far short of its promise to NATO to spend two per cent of GDP on defence. “I think they'll be pleased to see positive momentum,” Perry said of the U.S., “but it doesn't resolve their concern about where we are.“ All NATO members, including Canada, agreed in 2014 to work toward spending the equivalent of two per cent of their GDP — a standard measurement of a country's economic output — on defence within the next decade. The promise followed complaints from the U.S. about burden-sharing among allies and broader concerns about new threats from Russia and China as the two countries increased their own military spending. NATO and the U.S. have repeatedly criticized Canada for not meeting the target, with President Donald Trump in December calling Canada “slightly delinquent” during a meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. His predecessor, Barack Obama, also called out Canada over its defence spending during an address to Parliament in 2016. The U.S. spends more than any other NATO member on defence, both in terms of raw cash and as a share of GDP. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday said the continued importance of increasing military spending would be discussed when defence ministers from across the alliance meet this week. The NATO figures show that Canada is poised to spend 1.45 per cent of its GDP on the military this year. That is not only a big jump from the 1.29 per cent last year, but the largest share of the economy in a decade. It also exceeds the government's original plan, laid out in the Liberals' defence policy in 2017, to spend 1.4 per cent of GDP on the military by 2024-25. That is when NATO members were supposed to hit the two-per-cent target. Yet the figures show the expected increase isn't the result of a new infusion of cash for the Canadian Armed Forces this year as spending is expected to hit $30 billion, up just over $1 billion from 2019. Rather, NATO predicts Canadian GDP will shrink by about eight per cent this year as COVID-19 continues to ravage the economy. The fact Canadian defence spending is expected to remain largely steady despite the pandemic is noteworthy, particularly as there have been fears in some corners about cuts to help keep the federal deficit under control. The NATO report instead appears to lend further credence to recent assertions from Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan, Defence Department deputy minister Jody Thomas and others that the Liberals are not readying the axe. Canada also remained 21st out of 29 NATO members in terms of the share of GDP spent on the military as other allies also got a surprise boost from the economic damage wrought by COVID-19. At the same time, Perry said the government has yet to lay out a timetable for when it plans to meet the two per cent target. Military spending is instead expected to start falling after 2024-25, according to the Liberal defence plan. Despite having agreed to the target during the NATO leaders' summit in Wales in 2014, successive Canadian governments have repeatedly described the NATO target as “aspirational.” This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2020. https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2020/10/21/canada-jumps-closer-to-military-spending-target-thanks-to-covid-19s-economic-damage.html

The Canadian Press OTTAWA — Canada has taken a big leap closer to meeting its promise to the NATO military alliance to spend a larger share of its economy on defence thanks to an unexpected assist from COVID-19. New NATO figures released Wednesday show that largely thanks to the pandemic, Canada is poised to spend the equivalent of more of its gross domestic product on defence this year than at any point in the past decade. That is because the alliance expects the Liberal government to hold Canadian defence spending steady even as COVID-19 batters the country's economic output. Yet defence analyst David Perry of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute says the results are unlikely to appease the United States, as Canada continues to fall far short of its promise to NATO to spend two per cent of GDP on defence. "I think they'll be pleased to see positive momentum," Perry said of the U.S., "but it doesn't resolve their concern about where we are." All NATO members, including Canada, agreed in 2014 to work toward spending the equivalent of two per cent of their GDP — a standard measurement of a country's economic output — on defence within the next decade. The promise followed complaints from the U.S. about burden-sharing among allies and broader concerns about new threats from Russia and China as the two countries increased their own military spending. NATO and the U.S. have repeatedly criticized Canada for not meeting the target, with President Donald Trump in December calling Canada "slightly delinquent" during a meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. His predecessor, Barack Obama, also called out Canada over its defence spending during an address to Parliament in 2016. The U.S. spends more than any other NATO member on defence, both in terms of raw cash and as a share of GDP. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Wednesday said the continued importance of increasing military spending would be discussed when defence ministers from across the alliance meet this week. The NATO figures show that Canada is poised to spend 1.45 per cent of its GDP on the military this year. That is not only a big jump from the 1.29 per cent last year, but the largest share of the economy in a decade. It also exceeds the government's original plan, laid out in the Liberals' defence policy in 2017, to spend 1.4 per cent of GDP on the military by 2024-25. That is when NATO members were supposed to hit the two-per-cent target. Yet the figures show the expected increase isn't the result of a new infusion of cash for the Canadian Armed Forces this year as spending is expected to hit $30 billion, up just over $1 billion from 2019. Rather, NATO predicts Canadian GDP will shrink by about eight per cent this year as COVID-19 continues to ravage the economy. The fact Canadian defence spending is expected to remain largely steady despite the pandemic is noteworthy, particularly as there have been fears in some corners about cuts to help keep the federal deficit under control. The NATO report instead appears to lend further credence to recent assertions from Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan, Defence Department deputy minister Jody Thomas and others that the Liberals are not readying the axe. Canada also remained 21st out of 29 NATO members in terms of the share of GDP spent on the military as other allies also got a surprise boost from the economic damage wrought by COVID-19. At the same time, Perry said the government has yet to lay out a timetable for when it plans to meet the two per cent target. Military spending is instead expected to start falling after 2024-25, according to the Liberal defence plan. Despite having agreed to the target during the NATO leaders' summit in Wales in 2014, successive Canadian governments have repeatedly described the NATO target as "aspirational." This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2020. https://www.kamloopsthisweek.com/news/canada-jumps-closer-to-military-spending-target-thanks-to-covid-19-s-economic-damage-1.24224303

From: National Defence Canada's Halifax-class multi-role patrol frigates are the backbone of the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN). Making sure that these ships have and maintain modern equipment is key to ensuring our navy can continue its important work. Canada's Halifax-class multi-role patrol frigates are the backbone of the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN). Making sure that these ships have and maintain modern equipment is key to ensuring our navy can continue its important work. Today, Defence Minister Harjit S. Sajjan announced an in-service support contract with Thales Canada, of Ottawa, Ontario, to support the SMART-S MK2 radar system used on Canada's Halifax-class frigates, starting in fall 2020. Valued at $4.6 million (including taxes), this contract will provide critical engineering, in-service support, and repair and overhaul services to ensure the radar remains operationally capable of detecting the location and range of possible air and surface threats up to 250 km away. The SMART-S MK2 radar is the primary tactical radar used on the Halifax-class frigates, and was installed as part of the Halifax-class Modernization Project. It is a medium-to-long-range 3-D radar that provides air and surface surveillance capabilities to the RCN's Halifax-class frigates. Keeping our Halifax-class frigates operational and at the height of modern technology is critical for maintaining the combat readiness of the RCN until the arrival of the Canadian Surface Combatant ships. Quotes “The continued support of the Royal Canadian Navy's Halifax-class frigates is an important aspect of Canada's defence policy, Strong, Secure, Engaged. The Halifax-class frigates are considered to be the backbone of the RCN. As maritime threats continue to evolve, this investment in equipment will provide our people in uniform with the tools they need, to continue protecting Canadians and supporting peace and security missions at home and abroad.” “We are providing the members in uniform with the equipment they need to carry out their important work. This in-service support contract is another example of our commitment to provide the Royal Canadian Navy with the technology it needs to continue protecting and serving Canadians.” The Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Public Services and Procurement “Investing in our local industry is now more important than ever with the COVID-19 pandemic. By supporting companies like Thales here in the National Capital Region, our government is continuing to grow local Ottawa-based industry, while also providing the women and men of the Canadian Armed Forces with the resources they need.” Anita Vandenbeld, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of National Defence Quick facts Halifax-class frigates monitor and control Canadian waters, defend Canada's sovereignty, facilitate large-scale search and rescue activities, and provide emergency assistance when needed. The frigates operate with and integrate into the United Nations, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and coalitions of allied states in support of international peace and security operations. Introduced into service in the 1990s, the Canadian-built Halifax-class frigates were recently modernized to remain operationally effective and relevant until the Canadian Surface Combatants enter into service. This contract will provide in-service support and repair and will overhaul parts for the SMART-S MK2 radar for one year, beginning this fall. There is also an option for an additional four, one-year extensions, in order to maintain support during the transition to future in-service support contracts. Should all options be exercised, the entire contract has a potential value of up to $19 million (including taxes). This contract is fully compliant with the Government of Canada's Sustainment Initiative, which helps us ensure performance, value for money, flexibility, and economic benefits. This in-service support contract for the radar is an interim measure that will ensure services until a new contract for the Halifax-class Combat System has been awarded and a transition has been completed in 2021. This future in-service support contract will combine five current contracts for the frigate's combat systems under one long-term contract managed by a single prime contractor, helping to ensure continued service and best value. Through the Halifax-class Modernization Project, the Government of Canada successfully modernized the RCN's fleet of 12 frigates to ensure they continue to meet evolving operational needs. Valued at $4.3 billion, this project provided state-of-the-art upgrades, including a new combat management system, new radar capability, new electronic warfare systems, and upgraded communications and missile systems. Final delivery was on November 30, 2016, with full operational capability achieved by January 31, 2018. https://www.miragenews.com/canada-ensures-continued-support-for-halifax-class-radar-systems/

More than Just a Ship With the release of Canada's defence policy Strong, Secure, Engaged in 2017, the Government of Canada signaled its commitment to renewing the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) fleet. As part of an effort to deliver a Blue Water Navy built around the ability to sustain two naval task groups of up to four combatants and a joint support ship, supplemented when warranted by a submarine and maritime air assets, the government committed to the acquisition of 15 Canadian Surface Combatants (CSC). The effort to procure these vessels represents the centrepiece of the National Shipbuilding Strategy - the largest procurement in Canadian history - and certainly one of its most complex, spanning over three decades Lockheed Martin Canada, the successful bidder in a lengthy but fair, open and transparent bid process, proposed a CSC concept design based on the United Kingdom's (UK) Type-26 Global Combat Ship, currently under construction. With this selection, Canada joins the UK and Australia who are leveraging the Type-26 Global Combat Ship design into their future fleets. The CSC is Canada's next generation warship, which will eventually replace both the recently retired Iroquois-class and today's modernized Halifax-class. Capabilities from both classes will be modernized and future-proofed to ensure not only that systems stay relevant for years to come, but more importantly that tomorrow's sailors have the equipment they need when sent into harm's way. It forms part of a broad vision of defence capabilities that will serve Canada's defence interests well into the latter half of the century. A Warship at its Core At its core, the CSC is being designed to be combat capable through the marriage of high-tech equipment and highly trained RCN sailors - able to conduct air, surface, sub-surface and information warfare missions simultaneously. The crews will be trained and organized to be capable of conducting warfare operations 24/7 and to both fight the ship and respond to any damage sustained simultaneously. Survivability, a key principle that shaped CSC requirements from the outset, refers to the ability to protect the crew onboard, maintain combat effectiveness under fire, and bring our sailors home safely on completion of the mission. This principle is reflected in ship requirements that include the military design standards for critical shipboard systems, levels of protection from blast and fragmentation, reduced signatures, a battle damage control system and, of course, the full suite of sensors and weapons the ship carries to defeat threats. The Operational Capability of CSC, or its ability to deliver credible and relevant effect, was also top of mind to ensure that the ship could deliver on the mission set outlined in Canada's defence policy Strong, Secure, Engaged. The design and capability fit aims to deliver a highly versatile ship that is multi-role in nature, and that affords the greatest range of capability. This outcome translates directly into agility and responsiveness for the RCN, including re-rolling a deployed ship from one mission to another, without returning to port. The ship will be able to a perform a broad range of missions with North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD), 5-Eyes nations, NATO, coalition partners, and here in Canada with other government departments and agencies. CSC will have decisive combat power for operations at sea, and in support of joint-force operations ashore. The versatility of the design will also ensure the RCN is well enabled to support missions for counter-piracy, counter-terrorism, intelligence and surveillance, interdiction and embargo operations, as well as provide support for humanitarian assistance, Search and Rescue, and law/sovereignty enforcement. The ship's capability suite includes: Four integrated management systems, once each for the combat system, platform systems, bridge and navigation systems and its cyber-defence system A digital beam forming Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar and solid state illuminator capability The USN Cooperative Engagement Capability sensor netting system A vertically launched missile system supporting long, short and close-in missile defence, long-range precision naval fires support and anti-ship engagements A 127mm main gun system and dual 30mm gun mounts A complete Electronic Warfare and countermeasures suite A fully integrated underwater warfare system with bow mounted sonar, towed low frequency active and passive sonar, lightweight torpedoes and decoys Fully integrated communications, networking and data link capabilities CH-148 Cyclone multi-role helicopter, multi-role boats and facilities for embarking remotely piloted systems. A Node in a System of Systems More broadly speaking, the CSC will also serve as a node in a broader system of systems, all of which are geared to ensuring that Canada is strong at home, secure in North America and engaged in the world. This system includes space-based assets, intelligence networks, advanced Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) collection platforms, and shore-based command and control facilities. As part of this approach, the RCN will also take interoperability to the next level, enabling systems integration both with other Canadian Armed Forces capabilities and our closest allies. Designed with a communications and information systems architecture that will enable it to share significant amounts of data, it will contribute to a modernized North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD), and better enable the RCN to leverage and support its closest allies on operations abroad. With its sensor-netting capability, which is also employed in the United States and Royal Australian navies, the CSC will have a significantly greater ability to defend itself against highly sophisticated threats. Finally, the ship will be digitally integrated with the RCN/CAF/DND enterprise ashore, in keeping with the RCN's Digital Navy strategy. It is being carefully designed from the outset with digital requirements in mind, with a view to leveraging new technologies in maintenance and materiel management, supply chain management, logistics, training, operational support, as well as operations. A Workplace and Home for Tomorrow's Sailors Ships are only as good as the sailors who sail them and going to sea has always involved some level of hardship, whether from the effects of the sea, the lack of privacy or simply the separation from family and loved ones. In keeping with an intent to ensure the Navy affords a safe, welcoming and inclusive workplace to all its members, the RCN is looking at the hardships of going to sea and aiming to lighten them in the CSC. Over the past several months a small team, comprised mostly of junior-level sailors, looked at the CSC design through a habitability lens and provided advice on those areas that sailors felt were most important to them. The team surveyed close to 3,000 members of the RCN and looked at everything from privacy, personal storage, sleeping quarters, mixed messing, mess occupancy, heads and wash-places, laundry facilities, digital connectivity, fitness facilities, recreation lounges and dining. The three most significant priorities highlighted were in the areas of privacy, the ability to digitally connect with families ashore and improved fitness facilities. The RCN is now working to see how this feedback might be incorporated into the design of CSC, to produce a ship that can better accommodate tomorrow's sailors and ensure that we remain committed to People First, Mission Always. A Significant Opportunity for Canadian Industry What lies ahead for a world-class industry team, led by Irving Shipbuilding Incorporated, Lockheed Martin Canada and BAE Systems, truly represents an immense opportunity. It all begins with ensuring the best equipment and right level of integration to enable and protect sailors in the future, so they can deliver on their mission. Next is the opportunity that comes within each line of effort related to the overall program: naval design, systems integration, shipbuilding, training development, and shore-based infrastructure. In each area, industry partners have a chance to adapt world-leading best practices, introduce new innovative approaches in their respective areas and leverage the best in modern technologies to make value-chain improvements. For example, the RCN is already involved with the CSC industry team in using a model-based systems engineering approach that will establish the foundation for the eventual creation of a digital twin of the ship, as well as a baseline digital thread that will facilitate the Navy's ability to capitalize on a variety of digital technologies in the future. The last area of opportunity lies in capitalizing on the benefits that come with three nations all building a surface combatant using the same baseline design. Examples include pursuing supply chain economies of scale, cooperating on design and engineering packages, sharing lessons learned in design and build practices, and collaborating on the development of training products. These areas of opportunity were spurred by Canada's National Shipbuilding Strategy, which aims to not only deliver Canada's Navy and Coast Guard the ships they need, but also to create a sustainable marine sector in Canada, and contribute economic benefits and highly skilled jobs to Canada's economy. Conclusion The CSC is more than just a ship - it represents a national endeavour to safeguard Canada's defence needs. It is being designed from the keel up to be multi-purpose in its capabilities, affording Canada the ability to deploy it across a broad spectrum of mission sets, and agility to adapt to a new mission, in hours not days or weeks. It is a significant component in a much broader system of systems, where interoperability is being elevated to integration, and digital technologies and data are leveraged as capabilities. It offers a floating environment that balances hard steel and high tech against the habitability needs and desires of today's young sailors - a home away from home. And finally, it offers a tremendous opportunity for Canadian industry to take on a complex challenge and deliver in a world-class and innovative way. The Canadian Surface Combatant - the right ship for the RCN and Canada. https://www.marketscreener.com/news/latest/Canadian-Navy-The-Canadian-Surface-Combatant-ndash-More-than-Just-a-Ship--31556116/