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© 2025 Conference of Defence Associations Institute
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The CDA Institute's programming convenes experts in Canadian defence, international security, and politics to provide nuanced discussion about current and ongoing issues in defence and security. https://cdainstitute.ca/
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In 2022, Canada unveiled its Indo-Pacific Strategy, committing $2.3 billion to boost its role in a region increasingly seen as the geopolitical and economic center of gravity. Has Canada actually become a relevant player in the Indo-Pacific, or are we still on the outside looking in? And given how quickly things are shifting, is it time to revisit and update this strategy before it becomes outdated?" On today’s episode of the Expert Series, CDA Institute Research Assistant Daniela Valenzuela ...
Canada's parliament has narrowly approved Prime Minister Mark Carney's first federal budget, allowing his minority Liberal government to avert an early election. The 2025 federal budget commits an additional $81.8 billion over five years to strengthen Canada’s defence capabilities, with a focus on modernizing military equipment, expanding digital infrastructure, and sustaining current defence assets. It sets a clear trajectory to meet NATO's 2% GDP target by the end of this year and aims for ...
Canada has shortlisted two international shipbuilders, Germany's TKMS and South Korea's Hanwha Ocean, for its Canadian Patrol Submarine Project, which aims to replace the Royal Canadian Navy's aging Victoria-class submarines. The program plans to acquire up to 12 conventionally powered submarines with under-ice capability and extended endurance, with the first delivery targeted for the mid-2030s. Both bids are now being evaluated for technical performance, delivery timelines, and potential ec...
Yesterday, as part of ongoing measures to streamline defence procurement, Prime Minister Carney and the Liberal government launched a Defence Investment Agency (DIA), tasked with accelerating the purchase and delivery of essential military equipment. The DIA aims to ensure that the CAF receives what it needs with minimal delay, while also promoting domestic industry growth. The agency’s creation comes at a time when Canada is seeking to diversify its defence partnerships with allies. On this...
On this week's episode of The Expert Series, Anne Rifenstein sits down with Colonel (Ret'd) Stefan Boucher and Lieutenant General (Ret'd) Andrew Leslie to give a big picture analysis for the Canadian artillery's role over the next ten years for Canada. They point towards the reactionary approach to defence funding and how it addresses the Army, discuss the best pathways forward for the Artillery to develop its personnel and training programs, and the technological assets that would best serve...
In response to an increasingly complex and competitive Arctic security environment, Canada has taken major steps to strengthen its maritime capabilities. Over the past year, this has included joining the trilateral "Ice Pact" with the U.S. and Finland, beginning construction on two heavy polar icebreakers, and integrating the Canadian Coast Guard into the Department of National Defence. These developments mark a significant evolution in how Canada approaches Arctic sovereignty, maritime secur...
The River-class destroyer is needed to address the aging and retiring fleet of Iroquois and Halifax-class warships, whose capabilities no longer meet current and future operational demands. These new ships will ensure Canada maintains a credible naval presence to support national defence, international alliances, and emerging security challenges, particularly in strategic regions like the Indo-Pacific and the Arctic. On this week's Expert Series podcast, Tim Addison, Director of Naval Affair...
Through Operation UNIFIER, Canada’s ongoing support for Ukraine demonstrates the critical role of middle powers in combatting contemporary security challenges. Since 2015, Op UNIFIER has provided training and advisory support to the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Helping to strengthen their capacity, the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) has served as a bridge to increase Ukrainian’s interoperability with other NATO partners. Particularly since Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the mission has...
The rapidly shifting international environment has sparked renewed interest in CANZUK cooperation as a potential axis for middle powers seeking to safeguard their autonomy and security. While Canada, Australia, the UK, and New Zealand have a long history of informal defence collaboration through arrangements like the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, formalizing CANZUK into a robust security partnership faces practical hurdles. In this week’s Expert Series, John Blaxland and Srdjan Vucetic e...
As Arctic tensions rise, missile technologies advance, and U.S. foreign policy veers toward unilateralism, NORAD faces mounting pressure to evolve. But can it? And will Canada rise to meet the challenge alongside the United States, or risk being left behind? Furthermore, will Canada step into the BMD conversation? In this week’s installment of the Expert Series, Dr. James Fergusson joins us to unpack whether and how Canada and the U.S. can overcome political, technical, and geographic challe...
The war in Ukraine is not just a regional conflict, it is a pivotal struggle over the future of liberal democracy, Western unity, and the global balance of power. With Russia pursuing expansionist aims, the West divided, and President Donald Trump reshaping U.S. foreign policy, the outcome of this war could determine whether democratic values or authoritarian spheres of influence define the next world order. Steven Pifer and Angela Stent joined this week’s Expert Series to unpack the evolvin...
With the Royal Canadian Navy facing urgent demands to grow its workforce, maintain aging ships, and prepare for increasingly complex security challenges in the Arctic and Indo-Pacific, can it balance immediate operational needs with long-term modernization? Today, Vice Admiral Angus Topshee, commander of the royal Canadian navy, joins us for a discussion on the future of the RCN, its challenges, priorities, and evolving role in a more contested global security environment. VAdm Topshee detail...
Charles Davies Joined the Expert Series to discuss the need for Canada to rethink its approach to national defence in response to a rapidly changing global security environment. Davies analyzes the impact of the changing global security environment on Canada’s defence posture and strategy, why its essential for Canada to shed its identity as a “small power” punching above its weight and embrace its potential on the world stage, the need for long-term whole-life management of defence capabili...
This week, Canada sat with its allies at the Hague and agreed to triple its defence funding over the next 10 years. Former Defence Minister Peter MacKay joined us to discuss the outcomes of the 76th NATO Summit in The Hague, which saw commitment from all 32 NATO members to increase defence spending, the geopolitical drivers behind this shift, concerns over Canada’s deteriorating military capabilities and systemic challenges in defence procurement, as well as the need for economic growth to su...
On Monday, June 9th, 2025, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Canada will accelerate its defence spending to reach 2% of GDP by the end of the 2025–2026 fiscal year, moving the target forward by several years. With Canada accelerating defence spending to 2% of GDP by 2025-26, how can the government and the CAF prepare for the far greater challenges and restructuring needed beyond just hitting the target? Former Commander of the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) and former Vice Chief of the Defenc...
On Monday, June 9th, 2025, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Canada will accelerate its defence spending to reach 2% of GDP by the end of the 2025–2026 fiscal year, moving the target forward by several years. CDAI Board Member and former NSIA to the Prime Minister, Vincent Rigby, joined the Expert Series to analyze the announcement, discussing the challenges of getting to 2%, matching new investments with appropriate personnel amid a recruitment and retention crisis, and the necessity of ...
Could a swarm of cheap drones launched from hidden trucks inside Russian territory mark a turning point in the Ukraine war? Nearly a week ago, Ukraine carried out a covert drone operation inside Russia, striking five military air bases and damaging or destroying a significant number of strategic bombers. The attack, codenamed “Spider’s Web,” involved 117 small, explosive-laden drones that were smuggled into Russia hidden in trucks, then launched remotely from locations just a few kilometers ...
As Russia’s war in Ukraine grinds on and tensions rise along NATO’s eastern flank, Lithuania is sounding the alarm, not just for itself, but for the entire transatlantic alliance If countries like Lithuania or Latvia are tested and Canada—or other members of the Alliance—hesitate, it could damage the credibility of NATO's collective defence. This would not only undermine the Alliance, but embolden authoritarian powers globally. To deter growing Russian aggression and help preserve the inte...
With tensions rising in the Indo-Pacific and the global economy vulnerable to disruption, Canada faces growing pressure to define its role in a region that is central to future global security and prosperity. As great power competition intensifies, and China ramps up military activity and rhetoric around a potential invasion of Taiwan, Canada must confront the limitations of its naval capacity, the urgency of alliance-building, and the need for a coherent strategic vision for its engagement w...
Dr. Rob Huebert joins today's Expert Series podcast to discuss the implications of Prime Minister Mark Carney’s announcement that Canada is exploring participation in the United States' “Golden Dome” defence initiative, unveiled by Donald Trump earlier this week. The Golden Dome, designed to intercept hypersonic, ballistic, and space-based threats, would mark a major expansion of American missile defence capabilities, echoing Reagan’s Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI). Dr. Huebert explains ...
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