Liberals tell allies of defence plans before Canadians
Policy update will be officially released June 7
OTTAWA • The Liberal government has been providing select allies with what officials say is a broad overview of its long-awaited defence policy update, even as Canadians wait for the specifics.
Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan said Monday the government will release the policy update to Canadians on June 7 — after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets fellow NATO leaders.
But The Canadian Press has learned Sajjan briefed counterparts from Britain, Australia and New Zealand on what officials described as a general overview of the policy’s direction last week.
The briefing occurred in Copenhagen, the officials said, where defence ministers from a number of countries discussed the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
Chief of defence staff Gen. Jonathan Vance also provided his American counterpart, Gen. Joseph Dunford, with an overview of the new policy during a recent visit to Washington, officials said.
The officials requested anonymity as they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
The Opposition Conservatives complained even before news of the briefings that U.S. officials were getting a sneak preview of the policy before Canadians.
There are big stakes attached to the policy update, including billions in planned military spending and the long-term viability of the Canadian Armed Forces.
But the officials insisted the briefings outlined the policy only in broad generalities, and allies will find out specifics at the same time as Canadians next month.
“They’re not getting copies of the document, they’re not getting a drilldown,” one official said. “They’re getting a broad strokes overview of where we intend to go.”
Some have questioned why the Liberals are waiting until after next week’s NATO leaders’ summit to release the review, after previously promising to unveil it before next Thursday’s meeting.
The policy update was initially promised at the start of the year, before Donald Trump’s election sent the government scurrying to figure out his priorities.
Officials said the government wants to set up the policy’s release with a speech by Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland in which she will lay out Canada’s broader foreign policy goals.
And they denied the most recent delay had anything to do with waiting to see what Trump says in Brussels, where he will be attending his first NATO summit.
Trump has been pressuring other countries in the military alliance to increase their defence spending, arguing they have not been carrying their weight in NATO.