Forget two per cent of GDP on defence—but maybe that’s not so bad

Canada’s defence needs will not be solved by aiming for an arbitrary target, even if it would lift the ignominy of being a laggard.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, right, holds a bilateral meeting with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Ottawa on April 4, 2018. Canada should spend a figure that is consistent with the country’s security needs and long-term national interests, writes Aaron Ettinger.The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Opinion

BY AARON ETTINGER

May 29, 2024

Released in April, Canada’s latest defence policy paper formalized what was already obvious: that Canada will never reach NATO’s spending targets and has no real intentions to do so. Our North, Strong and Free’s bottom line: $8.1-billion over the next five yea...

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