Wednesday, April 20, 2005

Oh Canada!

Way to go, Canada!

Canada is rejoining the Western alliance, it seems. Canada will move to become more active in the world, including gearing up their military capabilities:

The defense portion calls for doubling the military's deployment capability in five years and $10.3 billion in new military spending, as well as adding 5,000 more new full-time soldiers and creating a new rapid-response force and buying new ships, aircraft and vehicles. It also pledged to strengthen defense cooperation with the United States, noting Ottawa would create a new command center, the Integrated Threat Assessment Center, to gather and distribute intelligence on potential threats to the continent. It would also establish overseas task forces and a special commando unit.


And this isn't window dressing:

Steven Staples, a defense analyst with the Polaris Institute in Ottawa, said Canada appeared to be giving up its traditional role as peacekeeper for U.N.-led operations, adopting the Washington mode of offensive action.

Of course, this needs political will to carry out and fund, but I am pleased as can be that Canada will rebuild its ability to project military power. Once, an entire Canadian army marched across Europe to defeat threats to world peace.

All I ask for is a brigade combat team. Add air and naval and special forces and I'll be positively ecstatic!