Part of $13.9 B def. initiative incl. The cost of the planned air force equipment purchases including the fighter jet replacement is C$26.4 billion.
Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan, unveiling a 20-year policy review that had been in the works for months, said the armed forces budget would jump by 73 percent to C$32.7 billion ($24.2 billion) in 2026/27 from C$18.9 billion in 2016/17, with the biggest increases coming in later years.
The plan would see Canada expand its military intelligence and special operations capabilities, enhance its Arctic presence and explore with Washington new roles for the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) beyond its current mandate of securing the continent's airspace and shores. Asked whether he thought Trump would be satisfied, Sajjan said: "This defense policy is for Canada".
"The defence budget has not been looked after well, it's been unpredictable". And yet, Governments have not invested adequately and predictably in their equipment, in their care and their well-being.
"In light of today's security challenges around the world, it's critical for Canada's moral voice to be supported by the hard power of a strong military".
It means, once fully realized, an increase in annual defence spending of about 70 per cent, Garneau said.
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Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley also weighed in, telling lawmakers Wednesday that Canada has neglected its military for years.
Still, while some of the money will start flowing right away, the long-awaited defence policy document shows the taps aren't expected to open all the way until after the next election. That's up from 1.2 percent now but still short of a North Atlantic Treaty Organization goal of 2 percent.
That is what happened with the last such vision, unveiled by the previous Conservative government in 2008 but quickly rendered unaffordable and subjected to billions of dollars in spending cuts. The new defense policy recommends modernizing the existing fleet and using them until 2040 instead of purchasing new ones. Bigger deficit or cuts to other areas? Other estimates put Canada's spending at closer to 1.0%.
He said the boost will bring total defense spending to 1.4 percent of GDP by 2024/25, up from 1.2 percent now. An earlier version left the impression the spending increase only amounted to $14 billion over 10 years.
The Trudeau government committed Wednesday to spend $62 billion more over the next two decades for a major expansion of the Canadian Armed Forces, aimed at ensuring it can properly defend the country in an increasingly unstable world.
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