RCAF aircraft, CAF personnel respond to wildfires in NWT as state of emergency declared - Skies Mag

Sur le même sujet

• 

  8 juillet 2024 | Local, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité

  Intelligence artificielle

  NATO, Canada, and the Demands of the New Battlefield Prime Minister Justin Trudeau with then-Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins at the Adazi Military base in Latvia, where Canada leads a NATO battle group, Monday, July 10, 2023/Adam Scotti By Elinor Sloan; Policy Magazine July 4, 2024   As we approach the July 9-11 NATO 75th anniversary summit in Washington, it is useful to recall that today, as in 1949, Canada’s primary security interest in NATO is to help prevent a general war on the European continent. Such a war, we know, would directly impact Canadian lives and prosperity.   An important part of preventing war is deterrence. Ever since Russia invaded Crimea, NATO has focused on using conventional military capabilities to deter potential Russian aggression against a NATO member. At first, the Alliance chose a tripwire approach. It deployed a small military force to the Baltics with the idea that Russia would be deterred by a recognition of the Article 5 implications of that deployment – that military action against a NATO member along its border would directly impact other members, triggering a larger Allied response.   NATO deployed battle groups to each of the Baltic countries, as well as Poland, with the Latvian one led by Canada. There was no thought that this tripwire force could actually repel Russian military action.   Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 gave pause to the tripwire approach. Within four months, NATO abandoned it in favor of a combat force that could face off against any potential Russian aggression. It ordered the conversion of the battle groups into full brigades; Canada has committed to transforming the one it leads in Latvia to a multinational brigade by 2026. The combat brigades are meant to be equipped for warfighting. In this regard, the war in Ukraine has given some indicators as to our new conventional military requirements.   Physical mass still matters. Far from the small, high-tech military forces that were at one time seen as the way of the future, the war in Ukraine has revealed that industrial-scale mass has returned to relevancy on the modern battlefield. Traditional combat platforms remain relevant. NATO’s new defence plans indicate the collective defence of Europe demands many familiar things: fighter jets, tanks, artillery, air defence, and long-range missiles. In the Ukraine war, old-fashioned artillery has inflicted the majority of casualties, and fighting without armour has proven costly.   The battlefield has become transparent. Sensors can detect almost any movement, while drones provide continuous battlefield reconnaissance. Forces must be dispersed, constantly on the move, and equipped with digital networks that can connect them across the battlefield and back to headquarters. Technology and access to sensor data enable decision-making at lower levels. Platoon-level forces can see and strike at targets with information that at one time would have been only available at the higher echelons.   Drones are forming an increasingly important and effective complement to traditional military platforms. Ukraine has used thousands of first-person view drones with small payloads to supplement larger artillery barrages against Russian forces. It has crippled Russian air defences by deploying decoy drones that make Russia light up its radars and instantly send targeting data back to larger ground-launched tactical missiles. It has coordinated the use of maritime drones and cruise missiles to take out a large portion of Russia’s Black Sea fleet.   Examples of the electromagnetic spectrum being exploited and blocked in electromagnetic warfare/NATO Joint Air Power Competence Centre   Electronic warfare (EW) remains salient at every high-tech juncture. Advanced sensors, robotics, precision munitions, and battlefield connectivity are all at risk of EW disruption—and are a target of adversary EW disruption—as each side seeks the electromagnetic advantage.   Seeping into all of these elements is artificial intelligence (AI). AI is highlighting the importance of mass and industrial strength – since the ability to pick out thousands of targets points to the necessity of having thousands of weapons to strike them. It is processing and disseminating data to battlefield commanders at superhuman speed, blurring the line between intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance on the one hand, and command and control on the other. And AI is being developed as a solution to EW jamming, by enabling a drone to home-in on its target even if the signal connection to its pilot operator is cut. The combination of traditional military requirements, cutting-edge technology, and fledgling but advancing AI is creating what some have called a “new kind of industrial war.”   Canada will be challenged to respond to these military requirements. On the personnel side, it struggles to maintain its existing recruitment levels, much less to field a larger force. Our North, Strong and Free, Canada’s defence policy released in April 2024, states a priority of modernizing the Canadian Armed Forces’ recruitment process to rebuild the military by 2032.   In the area of military capabilities, the policy includes acquiring long-range missiles for the Army; modernizing its artillery; upgrading or replacing its tanks and light armoured vehicles; and acquiring both strike drones and counter-drone assets that can neutralize adversary drones. The Army is in the early stages of modernizing its electronic warfare capabilities, as well as acquiring command and control systems at the tactical and operational levels for digital connectivity on the battlefield. The Department of National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces have launched their first Artificial Intelligence Strategy, stating AI will be foundational to defence modernization. Yet they have just begun to identify the AI-enabled capabilities that our military will need. The challenge with respect to acquiring military capabilities is not so much in securing funding. Rather, it lies in recruiting and retaining personnel with advanced technological skills, and in navigating a defence procurement system which, through the accumulation of bureaucratic steps over many years, is now layers deep and overly time consuming. For good reason, the recent defence policy includes a review of Canada’s defence procurement system.   Ensuring there is no general war on the European continent endures as Canada’s key security interest in NATO. Central to this is credible conventional military deterrence. People and equipment are the core elements. A streamlined, effective personnel recruitment system, and defence procurement process, are the critical enablers.   Elinor Sloan is a Professor of International Relations in the Department of Political Science at Carleton University. She previously served as a defence analyst in the Department of National Defence. Prior to completing her PhD at Tufts University, she was a logistics officer in the Canadian Armed Forces.  

• 

  24 novembre 2022 | Local, Aérospatial

  RCAF to look at 'revolutionary' vertical lift options to replace CH-146 Griffon

  As the RCAF launches into a project for its next tactical aviation platforms, it is closely following what allies are doing.

• 

  2 novembre 2020 | Local, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité

  ‘There could be turmoil’: How Canada is bracing for the U.S. election

  By Mercedes Stephenson & Marc-André Cossette Global News With the U.S. presidential election just days away, the Canadian government is steeling itself for the weeks of uncertainty that could ensue if the result is unclear or contested. In the corridors of power in Ottawa, planning for this election started early, according to a senior government official who requested anonymity. Those preparations have been intense, generating a flurry of briefings and threat assessments, as Canada braces for all scenarios. Much hinges on how U.S. President Donald Trump will react on Election Night and the weeks that follow. Throughout his presidency, Trump has shattered expectations of normal political behaviour. He now appears willing to defy one of the most basic of democratic norms, having refused to say unequivocally whether he'll accept the results of the election if he loses. John Bolton, Trump's former national security adviser, warns the president won't leave graciously if defeated. “There could be turmoil,” Bolton said. “If he thinks confusion and chaos can help him hang on, can help affect recounts and contests, I think there's every prospect he'll engage in it.” U.S. election highlighting need for ‘unified' response In the aftermath of the election, multiple sources told Global News that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his team will lean heavily on Canada's embassy in Washington and especially on Ambassador Kirsten Hillman. Her predecessor, David MacNaughton, said Hillman has likely been in near-daily communication with the Prime Minister's Office, funnelling information that she has gleaned from her contacts in the White House, Congress, the U.S. State Department and American security agencies. Back in Ottawa, the prime minister will want premiers and opposition parties on side too, MacNaughton said. “When we're dealing with something as important as our relationship with the United States, we need to be unified,” he said, citing the non-partisan Team Canada approach that was taken when renegotiating NAFTA. “That's what's going to be necessary, regardless of what happens with the outcome of this election.” But so long as there's any doubt about the result, the prime minister would be wise to keep his powder dry, said Roland Paris, Trudeau's former foreign policy and defence adviser. “Canadian prime ministers rarely have anything to gain by involving themselves in U.S. domestic politics, and they often have quite a bit to lose,” he said. Aside from reaffirming Canada's confidence in the U.S. electoral process, the federal government will do all it can to avoid being drawn into the political firestorm raging south of the border. Preparing for civil unrest and the ‘nightmare scenario' Still, multiple sources said Canada can't ignore the possibility of civil unrest and violence in the United States. For 10 years, Ward Elcock served as Canada's top spy, leading the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS). He said there's no question that Trump's heated rhetoric has fuelled the resurgence of far-right extremism in the United States: a phenomenon that poses a serious threat as Americans decide who should lead their country for the next four years. “There may well be some people who do weird things in the aftermath of the election, particularly if — as seems likely at this point — Mr. Trump loses and loses badly,” Elcock said. “There may be some of his supporters who do get pushed into violent scenarios that are hard for us to imagine.” Just one month ahead of the election, a report by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security called white supremacists “the most persistent and lethal threat” in the country. That threat is on Canada's radar too, according to Thomas Juneau, a professor of international affairs at the University of Ottawa and a former analyst with the Department of National Defence. “One scenario that is always a nightmare scenario for Canada is the issue of security threats coming from Canada, crossing the Canadian-American border and reaching the U.S.,” he said. “The fear on our side is always that the response on the American side will be to close the border, which economically would be devastating for us.” Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a senior national security source told Global News the federal government is quietly assessing the risk that election-related violence in the United States could spill over into Canada. As a result, Canadian intelligence agencies will closely monitor potential flashpoints. Those include border states like Michigan, where the FBI recently foiled a militia plot to kidnap the state's governor, and Washington, where waves of anti-racism protests may have attracted more far-right extremists. ‘Not our first rodeo' managing U.S. disruption: experts Despite the uncertainty swirling around the election, experts agree that ties between the Canadian and American defence and intelligence communities likely won't be affected. “The underlying relationship is very strong,” Elcock said, describing it as one of interdependence. “We may be a smaller partner, but we're not necessarily just a bit player,” he said. And what if Trump were to issue wild orders in the post-election chaos — demanding, for example, that U.S. agencies cease all intelligence-sharing with allies? Several intelligence sources said the U.S. defence and security apparatus likely won't take orders that it considers illegitimate. “The United States is not disintegrating,” Elcock said. “It may need a period of rest and rejuvenation after Mr. Trump passes from the scene, as inevitably he will at some point. But the reality is most of those organizations are still there and they're still capable.” In other words, Trump may be disruptive, but the U.S. military and intelligence community is still run by professionals who won't toe the president's line if he goes rogue. No matter what happens on Nov. 3, the overwhelming consensus appears to be that Americans will find a way to endure. “This is not our first rodeo,” Bolton said. “We've had bitterly contested elections before and we've gotten through it — and we'll get through this one, too.” See this and other original stories about our world on The New Reality airing Saturday nights on Global TV, and online. https://globalnews.ca/news/7432158/us-election-canada-preparations/