Nice, seemingly awkward at times, the former Norwegian prime minister was a steady, usually irresistible presence on the international stage, especially during the years when Donald Trump was president of the United States. In a modest manner, he unveiled the curtain on the expected decisions of NATO leaders later this week in Madrid, Spain. When one says that 300,000 Western soldiers, coming from 30 countries, will be put on higher alert. It is fair to say that people will stand up and watch, especially with the horror of Ukraine on full display and the Russian nuclear missile launch last spring. The announcement is a nearly eightfold increase in the size of NATO’s response force, from the existing 40,000 troops, aircraft crews and sailors. Separately, but at the same time, the Western military alliance plans to turn the eight battalion-sized battle groups already in Eastern Europe on the Russian border – including the Canadian-led one in Latvia – into full-fledged combat brigades, effectively doubling their their extract and composition. Stocks of additional military equipment will be sprinkled on pre-arranged locations across Europe and will be received by tens of thousands of aid rushed to the east of the continent with Russia in the event of a crisis. “Together, this is the biggest review of our collective Cold War deterrence and defense,” Stoltenberg told NATO headquarters on Monday. All of this will have profound implications, especially for Canada.
“Canada has already grown:” Stoltenberg
Both Britain and Germany, which lead multinational battalions in the other two Baltic states – Lithuania and Estonia – have already said they intend to increase their presence in countries with troops. Canada is silent. Originally seen as a reassuring presence for Eastern European allies bothered by Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, the battle groups have been described as somewhat derogatory as “travel cables” for NATO. big enough to save time, but only that. Since the invasion of Ukraine, Baltic leaders have demanded something more substantial. Canada and Spain were the two largest contributing troops to Latvia for almost five years, but after the full invasion of Ukraine, Denmark sent several hundred reinforcements to the country. NATO is looking to these countries first to further fill the ranks in Latvia, and Canada in particular as a force leader. Watch: Western military aid to Ukraine “not enough”: NATO Secretary General:
Western military aid to Ukraine “not enough”: NATO Secretary General
“When I say they need more, they need more,” NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said in an exclusive Canadian interview with Power & Politics on military aid missions to Ukraine. “The price of not supporting Ukraine will be much higher than the price you are paying today to provide support.” Perhaps even more politically and institutionally worrying for Canada will be the expectations surrounding the increase in NATO’s response force and the demand to keep troops on high alert. “To do that, we will need to invest more,” Stoltenberg said. Last winter, Defense Minister Anita Anand said 3,400 soldiers, sailors and aircraft crews had stepped aside as part of NATO’s old reinforcement plan. Speaking to CBC News Network Power & Politics late Monday, Stoltenberg said there were expectations that Canada would have to meet. “There will be specific targets for different countries, including Canada,” he said. “I can not share with you the exact number for Canada now, but what I can say is that Canada has already grown.”
Recruitment Challenges in the Canadian Forces
Canada sent modest aid to Latvia – an artillery battery – last spring. Last weekend, the Department of Homeland Security quietly announced that two of its coastal defense ships, originally designed as minesweepers (HMCS Summerside and HMCS Kingston), had participated in NATO’s deterrent mission to Europe, bringing the total number of ships navy in the area up to four. However, it is the requirement to keep the troops in a higher state readiness, where the actual collection of cash should take place. Being prepared means you are training and being trained costs money and there must be troops, crew and sailors around to exercise and the Canadian military is facing recruitment challenges. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg greets Canadian troops during a visit to the Adazi military base in Kadaga, Latvia in March. 8. (Roman Koksarov / The Associated Press) The country’s top military commander, General Wayne Eyre, told a defense conference last fall that it could take up to seven years for Canadian conscription efforts to recover from the effects of both the sexual misconduct crisis and the pandemic. Figures released last fall showed that the full-time army had 7,500 less than its required strength – a huge gap in a regular force of about 70,000. Completing the points will be costly and time consuming. Last spring, Eyre said the army’s level of readiness was “one of the things that keeps me awake at night.” The federal budget, introduced last spring, boosts defense spending by $ 8 billion over five years. Stephanie von Hlatki, associate professor and defense policy expert at Queen’s University in Kingston, OD, said the expansion of NATO forces in Eastern Europe was to be expected, but wondered how nations would react when the bills began to come. Political cohesion across the alliance, not just in Canada, will be a problem, he said. “I believe in people’s assessments of the situation when they say it will be a long war and that is exactly why I have identified political cohesion as the main challenge for NATO in the future,” said von Hlaki. “Because even though in the short term everyone has come together [around Ukraine and NATO’s response]”In the long run, it is really unpredictable to see how this political unity will be maintained.” This political unity will be further tested as Canada comes under increasing pressure to meet NATO’s reference target of spending two percent of its gross domestic product on defense. “I expect all allies, including Canada, to invest more and adhere to the two per cent guideline,” Stoltenberg said. Canada currently spends 1.5 percent of its GDP on defense, and most importantly, it has no clear, stated plan for achieving the alliance’s goal.
