Prime Minister Stephen Harper unveiled the country's "Canada First" defence strategy Monday, which envisions spending $30 billion over 20 years to ensure the military has the equipment and troops needed to defend the country and meet our international obligations.
The announcement in Halifax laid out many of the known facts about the future of the military, but they are worth repeating because some Canadians have forgotten that just a few years ago the Forces were on the verge of collapse because they lacked the means to do much more than hold a parade. The state of readiness was so poor that a Canadian warship sailed for the Persian Gulf in 2002 with anti-aircraft guns borrowed from a museum.
The decay began in the 1960s when Ottawa started losing interest in the military as a fighting force, culminating in the dark decade of the 1990s. The events of 9/11 changed attitudes, but action to boost readiness lacked any sense of urgency. Ironically, it was former Liberal governments that promoted the idea of armed humanitarian intervention -- "responsibility to protect" -- even though Canada lacked the muscle to back up the talk.
Under Harper's plan, Canada is acquiring new airplanes, helicopters, tanks, ships and trucks, as well as expanding the size of the Forces to a total of 100,000 men and women in the regular and reserve forces. As well, the country's aging defence infrastructure, which includes 21,000 buildings and more than 12,000 roads and utilities on over 800 properties, is getting upgraded after 50 years of decline.
The defence strategy says protection of the homeland, including our commitment to Arctic sovereignty, must be the military's No. 1 priority, followed by continental defence, which Canada and the United States share through NORAD and other defence arrangements. The Canada First strategy seems obvious, but it has never been properly articulated before because Ottawa has never taken seriously its duty to ensure, by force of arms if necessary, the country's territorial integrity.
The biggest strategic turnaround, however, is the government's belief that Canada has a moral obligation to participate in military expeditions to relieve suffering and enhance global security. As a wealthy nation with a historic sense of the value of freedom and human rights, Canada ought to be prepared to join other allies in armed conflict, if necessary.
Indeed, Canada is acquiring new weapons and raising troop levels not because we are warlike, but precisely because we are a peaceful, moral nation. The ability to participate with other allies on an equal basis also means Canada is taken seriously in the corridors of power, rather than tolerated as a well-meaning, but ineffective, observer.
It was hoped following the collapse of the Soviet Union 20 years ago that the world would hold hands and sing Kumbaya. Unfortunately, power still comes out of the barrel of a gun, if you've got one.
PREVIOUS
