{"id":5288,"date":"2024-11-22T23:47:01","date_gmt":"2024-11-22T23:47:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/torontotribune.ca\/index.php\/2024\/11\/22\/blair-defends-canadas-defence-spending-plan-as-credible-amid-criticism-national\/"},"modified":"2024-11-22T23:47:01","modified_gmt":"2024-11-22T23:47:01","slug":"blair-defends-canadas-defence-spending-plan-as-credible-amid-criticism-national","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/torontotribune.ca\/index.php\/2024\/11\/22\/blair-defends-canadas-defence-spending-plan-as-credible-amid-criticism-national\/","title":{"rendered":"Blair defends Canada\u2019s defence spending plan as \u2018credible\u2019 amid criticism – National"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Defence Minister Bill Blair<\/a> on Friday pushed back on U.S. critics of Canada\u2019s defence spending<\/a>, saying the eight-year plan to reach its NATO<\/a> commitment was \u201ccredible and verifiable\u201d despite reports saying otherwise.<\/p>\n

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Speaking to reporters at the opening of the Halifax International Security Forum, Blair said \u201cnobody has to argue with me\u201d that Canada needs to spend more on defence, and that the federal government was making the necessary investments, but more international and industry collaboration is needed to reach the NATO spending target.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve told (our allies) they are pushing on an open door,\u201d Blair said. \u201cWe are going to make those investments.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know that we need to do more, but it\u2019s (about) getting there in a timely way. It\u2019s going to require cooperation and collaboration with our closest allies, with industry and some really hard work by the Canadian Armed Forces.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Canada is one of just eight NATO members not meeting the alliance\u2019s benchmark of spending at least two per cent of GDP on defence. Its updated defence policy forecasts spending will rise from 1.37 per cent of GDP currently to 1.76 per cent by 2030.<\/p>\n

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau vowed at July\u2019s NATO summit that Canada\u2019s defence spending will hit two per cent by 2032. Yet the parliamentary budget officer last month said the government\u2019s plan for achieving that is unclear<\/a> and based on \u201cerroneous\u201d economic projections.<\/p>\n

The financial watchdog\u2019s report said Canada will have to nearly double its annual military spending to $81.9 billion from current levels to achieve the NATO target.<\/p>\n

But Blair, who has previously dismissed the PBO\u2019s findings, said Friday the 2032 timeline was \u201crealistic\u201d given how long it will take to deliver on equipment like naval destroyers and F-35 fighter jets.<\/p>\n

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The incoming Donald Trump administration is expected to take a hardline stance on NATO<\/a> and members\u2019 spending commitments, and will have several allies in the U.S. Congress.<\/p>\n

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Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, who is leading the U.S. delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Alliance meeting in Montreal this weekend, unloaded on Trudeau\u2019s defence policies in an interview with Politico on Friday<\/a>, using words like \u201cfreeloading\u201d and \u201cincredible arrogance\u201d and warning of potential consequences.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re being dishonest saying that you\u2019re going to meet a commitment that you don\u2019t,\u201d Turner said. \u201cYou are cheating everyone else and that has to be addressed to some extent by everyone else who\u2019s not cheating.\u201d<\/p>\n

Blair called the comments \u201cunfair\u201d when asked about them in Halifax.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we\u2019ve already demonstrated just in the last two years a real commitment to begin the important and necessary work of acquiring new platforms for the Canadian Armed Forces, with planes and ships and submarines and other new technologies, new weapons systems, ammunition,\u201d Blair said. \u201cAll of that work is is well underway.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The minister pointed to the Canadian Armed Forces\u2019 \u201cvery credible plan to significantly accelerate\u201d recruitment as an example of how Canada is taking its defence commitments seriously.<\/p>\n

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Another was the timeline on acquiring a new submarine fleet, after Blair would only say the government was \u201cexploring\u201d it during April\u2019s unveiling of the defence policy update.<\/a><\/p>\n