Canada Hikes Defense Budget as Trump Demands Allies Step Up
- Trudeau details military plan a day after pivot away from U.S.
- Goal of 1.4% of GDP by 2025 still falls short of NATO target
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Justin Trudeau’s government plans to increase annual military spending by two thirds over a decade as Canada braces for a more isolationist U.S. under Donald Trump.
Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan released a policy review Wednesday, outlining a 20-year military procurement strategy that reiterates plans to replace its existing fighter jets and renew its fleet of warships. Defense spending will increase to 1.4 percent of gross domestic product within eight years, Sajjan said. That’s up from 1.2 percent currently but still short of a North Atlantic Treaty Organization goal of 2 percent.