Canada continues to dodge NATO calls for defence spending. There is a long-standing complaint that Canada continues to fall short of the alliance’s stated goal that its members’ defence spending should equal a minimum of 2% of gross domestic product.
May 23
(CHRIS MacLEAN)
It has been well over a year since Putin initiated this latest effort to bring Ukraine back under its control. The rest of the world watches, waving banners of support, some offering much needed equipment and ammunition, but never troops, never a show of global determination. The theory of global security based on the threat of mutual assured destruction has proven to be fundamentally flawed in practice.
May 19
(KEN POLE)
The first report by the government's External Monitor on misconduct and abuse within the Department of National defence and the Canadian Armed Forces has been delivered at what could be consider "lightspeed" within most bureaucracies.
May 03
(CTV)
Two former Canadian Armed Forces veterans have been reported killed by Russian artillery fire while defending the besieged Ukrainian city of Bakhmut last week. Identified as Cole Zelenco, 21, from St. Catharines and Kyle Porter, 27, of Calgary, they are believed to be the fourth and fifth Canadian volunteers killed since the war began
May 25
(Ken Pole)
As Russia’s “special military operation” in Ukraine hits the 15-month mark, Canada and its allies continue to support Ukrainian forces with additional training and weaponry ahead of an anticipated spring counteroffensive against the invaders.
May 24
(Ken Pole)
An intergovernmental committee set up in 2018 continues to make headway in tackling the many challenges facing Canadian Armed Forces personnel and their families who historically face frequent posting changes across country.
May 23
(CP)
The Military Police Complaints Commission is looking into how military police handled the sexual-assault allegation against Major-General Dany Fortin, who was cleared of misconduct after his acquittal by a Quebec Court last December. Fortin says he was the victim of a biased investigation and the Commission said today that his statements about senior military officials make it a matter of public interest.
May 22
(FrontLine News)
A formation of six Royal Canadian Air Force tactical helicopters will be transiting through western and central Canada between Monday, May 22 and Friday, May 26.
 Collins Aerospace |
 Logistik Unicorp |
 Beretta Defense Technologies / Stoeger Canada |
27 April 2023 –
The CAF is in crisis mode, attempting to deal with a lack of personnel and equipment, efforts to change its culture, operational pressures and reputational challenges. This huge machine cannot rapidly ramp up from dereliction when needed – it's time for Canadians to begin to recognize service to country as important, and give it the priority it deserves.
29 March 2023 –
The federal budget plans a 3% reduction in across-the-board spending and new spending is squarely focusing on domestic economic issues. The defence policy review, announced a year ago, will likely be stalled while to government turns its attention to domestic needs.
22 January 2023 –
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?
15 January 2023 –
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.
26 May 2023
(TASS)
Deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons to neighbouring Belarus, a close ally in the war against Ukraine, has been formalized in a May 25 agreement. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said the arrangement is justified by “an extremely sharp escalation of threats on the western borders of Russia and Belarus.”
26 May 2023
(Defense News)
Subject to Senate approval, President Joe Biden has nominated General CQ Brown, current head of the air force, as the next Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman to succeed Army General Mark Milley. Having served in Europe, the Middle East and the Indo-Pacific, Brown is the son of a Vietnam War veteran and grandson of a World War II vet.
24 May 2023
(Al Jazeera)
Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban, often out of step with other NATO leaders, said today that Ukraine is unlikely to win its war with Russia. “It is obvious that there is no victory for the poor Ukrainians on the battlefield,” he said. “The war can be stopped only if the Russians can make an agreement with the U.S. “In Europe, we are not happy with that, but it’s the only way out.”
24 May 2023
(Defense News)
The Government Accountability has highlighted more issues with the U.S. Air Force’s planned procurement of new T-7A Red Hawk advanced jet trainers being developed by Boeing and Saab. It cites safety issues, scheduling and testing delays and the potential for further slippage in a program already a decade later than the USAF had expected.
23 May 2023
(Springfield News-Sun)
The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory has demonstrated a microwave drone countermeasure, the Tactical High-power Operational Responder, against a swarm of targets. “THOR has never been tested against these types of drones before, but this did not stop the system from dropping the targets out of the sky with its non-kinetic speed-of-light […] pulses,” an official explained.
23 May 2023
(Defense News)
In what it says is an attempt to avoid mistakes in programs such as the Lockheed Martin F-35, the U.S. Air Force plans to ensure it has access to all the follow-on data it needs from contractors as it works on its Next Generation Air Dominance platform. Otherwise, says Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, “what that basically does is create a perpetual monopoly […] so we’re not going to do that with NGAD.”
23 May 2023
(CP)
The Military Police Complaints Commission is looking into how military police handled the sexual-assault allegation against Major-General Dany Fortin, who was cleared of misconduct after his acquittal by a Quebec Court last December. Fortin says he was the victim of a biased investigation and the Commission said today that his statements about senior military officials make it a matter of public interest.
23 May 2023
(NBC)
Three Russian scientists involved in hypersonic weapons development face what the Kremlin calls “very serious accusations” of treason. They were detained several days after Russian hypersonic missiles were downed by Ukrainian air defences last week.
23 May 2023
(CTV)
Julianne Smith, the U.S. Ambassador to NATO, says the alliance expects Canada and other alliance members to have a clear plan of how they will meet defence spending targets when they meet July 11-12 in Lithuania. “Negotiations are still underway […] but my prediction is that will focus on making the 2% (of national GDP) target an enduring commitment.”
23 May 2023
(Defense News)
A 33-tonne propellor shaft misaligned by no more than a millimetre took Britain’s newest aircraft carrier, the £3-billion HMS Prince of Wales, out of service after only one day in August 2022. Now the Royal Navy is trying to figure out liability for the massive repair bill, an exercise complicated by the fact that the ship was built by a now defunct consortium
