Question Period Note: ARCTIC SECURITY

• Geopolitical competition, rapid technological changes, and the changing Arctic landscape make defending this strategically important region, its people, and our interests there more important than ever.
• The Canadian Armed Forces maintains a year-round presence in the Arctic through operations, exercises, and training activities.
• In fact, we have some 300 full-time military personnel in the North, alongside over 1,700 Canadian Rangers, who provide enabling assistance to northern operations and activities.
• On top of this, we regularly have Canadian Armed Forces members flowing in and out of the North, including for Operation NANOOK, Canada’s signature northern operation.
• Canada is making significant investments to enhance northern defence capabilities, including through Strong, Secure, Engaged and NORAD modernization.
• In fact, we are investing $38.6 billion over the next twenty years in NORAD modernization, marking the most significant upgrade to Canada’s NORAD capabilities in nearly four decades.

IF PRESSED ON NATO 2% SPENDING
• Our commitment to Euro-Atlantic and global security is resolute and we continue to make landmark investments to equip our Armed Forces.
• We are procuring a new fleet of 88 F-35 fighter jets—the largest investment into the Royal Canadian Air Force in 30 years valued at $19 billion—investing $38.6 billion to modernize our NORAD capabilities, and working diligently to surge the Canadian-led NATO battle group in Latvia to brigade level.
• Canada has also committed over $1 billion in military aid to Ukraine, with over $8 billion in total aid.
• Overall, Canada’s defence policy increases our defence spending by over seventy percent between 2017 and 2026.
• We have also announced $8 billion in new spending in Budget 2022.
• We will continue to invest in the Canadian Armed Forces and deliver modern equipment to our military.

anadian Armed Forces (CAF) Footprint in the Arctic
• The CAF exercises surveillance and control in the Arctic, maintains a visible and persistent presence, responds to aeronautical search and rescue (SAR) incidents, assists provinces and territories with ground SAR operations and natural disaster emergencies when required, supports Arctic and Northern peoples and communities, and contributes to whole of government priorities in the region.
• The CAF’s permanent presence in the North is anchored by Joint Task Force North (JTF-N) in Yellowknife, along with 440 Transport Squadron RCAF,1 Canadian Ranger Patrol Group Headquarters and a Company of reserve infantry. Team North has approximately 300 personnel, including two JTF-N detachments in Whitehorse and Iqaluit.
• The Canadian Army’s Arctic Response Company Groups are regionally-focused units capable of projecting to Canada’s North to conduct sovereignty operations, facilitate disaster response support, and provide general assistance to other Governmental departments.
• The CAF’s footprint in the North also includes:
• Canadian Forces Station Alert, the northernmost CAF outpost and the northernmost continuously inhabited place in the world; and
• Canadian Armed Forces Arctic Training Centre (CAFATC) in Resolute Bay, Nunavut, which provides a permanent location for training and operations in the High Arctic. The Canadian Army runs an annual Northern Exercise (NOREX) at CAFATC.
• National Defence also has a number of assets used by NORAD, including the North Warning System, and three Forward Operating Locations in Yellowknife, Inuvik, and Iqaluit, which can accommodate fighter aircraft and other assets supporting NORAD operational requirements and exercises on a temporary basis.
• Through NORAD modernization, National Defence is investing in upgrading the Forward Operating Locations, as well as Goose Bay. This will support a more robust NORAD and CAF presence when needed, with potential opportunities for multipurpose infrastructure at these sites that could benefit local communities, including Indigenous partners.

• Operation NANOOK
• Op NANOOK is the CAF’s signature northern operation designed to enhance and expand the CAF’s capabilities, footprint, and readiness, safeguard Canada’s Arctic sovereignty, and develop interagency, intergovernmental, Indigenous, and multinational partnerships.
• National Defence Initiatives to Enhance the CAF’s Ability to Operate in the North
• Participating in space-based global SAR capabilities through its contributions to the Medium Earth Orbit SAR system. National Defence is also building two SAR ground terminals in Canada and is providing SAR repeaters on a satellite system, greatly increasing the range in which emergency beacons can be detected.
• Enhancing Canada’s surveillance of northern approaches and northern presence through investments in Over-the-Horizon Radar, space-based surveillance and communications capabilities, improvements to northern basing, and support capabilities that will extend the reach of the CAF as part of NORAD modernization.
• Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships (AOPS)
• Conducting armed sea-borne surveillance in Canada's waters, including in the Arctic, enforcing Canadian sovereignty in cooperation with Canadian Armed Forces partners and other government departments, and enhancing our ability to assert Canadian sovereignty.
• Three out of six have been delivered and deployed on domestic and international operations: HMCS Harry DeWolf , HMCS Margaret Brooke, and HMCS Max Bernays, with a project cost of $4.98 billion.

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