Archived

Senior German and Norwegian defence officials say they’re confident Canada will sign on to the ReArm Europe plan in the coming weeks and such a move will make it easier for the Liberal government to buy new submarines from allies.

Jasper Wieck, the political director of the German Ministry of Defence, and Norway’s program director of submarines, Capt. (N) Oystein Storebo, spoke with CBC News recently about the pitch for Canada to join their existing partnership, in which the two nations are constructing cutting-edge boats that will begin to enter service in 2028.

Competition for the multibillion-dollar defence program is heating up and their remarks come weeks after two South Korean shipyards, in a joint venture, submitted a detailed, unsolicited proposal worth up to $24 billion, to build 12 submarines for the Royal Canadian Navy.

…

Wieck says that agreement, plus the rearmament program, are important for both Europe and Canada as the West tries to face down the threat of potential Russian aggression.

“It’s a partnership that has so many benefits from both sides,” Wieck said. “Once Canada would have signed the security and defence partnership with the European Union, Canada will be considered as an EU member state in all these European schemes and all these European incentives.”

Both Norway and the U.K. are not members of the EU but are deeply involved in the rearmament plan.

“It is about [the] collective effort by Europeans, not only to buy collectively, but to maintain collectively and train collectively and operate collectively,” Wieck [said].

…

[Edit typo.]