Standing alongside Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at one of the country’s main fighter bases in Cold Lake, Alta., Stoltenberg listed a list of actions Moscow has taken in the Far North in cooperation with Beijing. “Russia has created a new administration in the Arctic,” he said. “It has opened hundreds of new and former Soviet-era Arctic military sites, including airfields and deep-sea ports. Russia is also using the region as a test bed for many of its new new weapons systems.” China is also expanding its reach and has declared itself a “near-Arctic” state, with plans to build the world’s largest icebreaker, he added. “He is investing billions of dollars in energy infrastructure and research projects in the high North,” Stoltenberg said. “Beijing and Moscow are also committed to intensifying hands-on operations in the Arctic. This is part of a deepening strategic partnership that challenges our values and interests.” Stoltenberg also highlighted NATO’s growing interest in Arctic defense, especially in light of Sweden and Finland’s plans to join the military alliance. The NATO chief and Trudeau spoke of increased cooperation but did not commit to major NATO-led exercises on Canadian soil in the Far North. Speaking on CBC’s Power & Politics, Defense Minister Anita Anand said allied participation in domestic Canadian military exercises is acceptable to Ottawa, but the Liberal government has “no plans” to host a NATO exercise similar to the annual Exercise Cold Reaction of the alliance in Norway. Yves Brodeur, a former Canadian ambassador to NATO, said the alliance’s formal invitation to train in the Arctic would send an important message to Russia. “That would be good,” Brodeur told Radio-Canada in an interview. “Given the fact that the high north is really an area that actually offers some very hostile conditions — it’s not an easy environment. So having NATO troops from NATO nations along with Canada in the high north would be , as far as I’m concerned, a great asset to the organization, to NATO.” WATCHES | NATO chief and Prime Minister tour Arctic defense facilities:
NATO and Trudeau tour Canada’s Arctic defenses
During a visit to Nunavut’s Cambridge Bay with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau discussed the importance of defense in Canada’s Far North amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Canada has traditionally been reluctant to work with allies other than the United States in the Far North. The reasons are related to sovereignty. Many of the country’s closest allies do not recognize Canada’s claim to the Northwest Passage. According to research by University of Calgary Arctic expert Rob Huebert, the US, UK, Germany, France, Belgium, Japan, the European Commission, Singapore and Russia (when it was the USSR) have protested officially in the last 40 years. or registered opposing views on Canada’s claim that the passage is an internal Canadian waterway. Experts have suggested that asking other nations to help defend the region — especially those that do not recognize Canada’s claim — could be seen as weakening Canada’s position. “The Northwest Passage is Canadian waters, period,” Trudeau said, answering questions with Stoltenberg on Friday. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, second left, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau tour Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, on Thursday. (Jason Franson/The Canadian Press) He acknowledged there is “a longstanding disagreement with the United States,” but said Washington “has understood our position and our allies, you know, respect Canada’s position.” Hubert said it would be “counterproductive for Europeans or Americans to ever pressure” Canada into asserting its sovereignty, especially in the current geopolitical climate. But if Canada is serious about its claim, he said, it should invest more in infrastructure — both military and civilian — to strengthen its control over the region. “When you look at what the Russians have done with the North Sea route,” Hubert said, “the reason why no one questions them — because they’ve basically created an inland waterway — no one questions them is because the Russians have such a strong ability to defend the region”. In his remarks, Stoltenberg pointed to this ability while avoiding any criticism of Canada.
