Ottawa to announce investments in NORAD on Monday

The press conference will take place at Trenton Air Force Base, Ontario.

US and Canadian military officials and experts had warned of the state of the defenses of the NORAD in light of Russian aggression in Ukraine.

Mrs Anand has been saying for several months that the government has been preparing a series of investments for the NORADthe Canada-US military organization that monitors continental air and sea space.

The Minister and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau restated these promises during their visit to the headquarters of the NORAD in Colorado earlier this month. They didn’t give any details.

The federal government has already indicated that part of the $8 billion provided for in the last budget for national defense would be set aside for NORAD. This could include a new long-range radar system to detect any threat coming through the Arctic.

Ms. Anand also said last month that the government was considering joining the missile defense system set up by the United States, which Canada gave up in 2005.

Canada’s lack of action has not gone unnoticed in the United States, says Andrea Charron, an associate professor at the University of Manitoba and one of the leading NORAD in Canada.

” We need Canada to achieve certain things. If we were previously ready to be patient by telling ourselves that gestures would be made, today, we are at the end of our patience. “

This growing impatience is demonstrated by the visit of several senior American officials to Ottawa. It also surfaced last spring during congressional hearings in Washington.

continental defense

Asked in March about Canada’s involvement in continental defence, the commander of the NORADUS General Glen VanHerck, declared that Canada was making decisions.

I can’t wait to see what will come of ithe added.

In August 2021, Harjit Sajjan, then Minister of National Defense, and his American counterpart Lloyd Austin issued a joint communiqué, mentioning numerous priorities, including the maintenance of the North Warning System, until it is can be changed by suitable replacement capacities.

Earlier this year, Canadian defense system companies were notified of plans to install a next-generation over-the-horizon radar system, which can significantly improve early warning and continuous surveillance of airspace and approaches. of North America. This radar would be installed in southern Canada, and could cost up to $1 billion.

Retired General Tom Lawson, former Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the NORAD, says the North Warning System needs to be replaced. It is one of the many areas of continental defense requiring investment.

Today, all concrete measures will be welcome.

If they announce additional investments of one or two billion dollars over the next five years, I will be a happy manhe says.