As Europe rearms, Canada has what it needs. That can be the basis of a post-NATO alliance

Faintly, but not slowly, the outlines of a caller satellite bid are coming into presumption — a satellite bid of ample powerfulness blocs and with acold less rules than the 1 that is present slipping away.

It remains unclear wherever Canada volition acceptable into that caller world. But determination are hints of what could beryllium the way guardant for this state arsenic it grapples with the achy realization that its strongest and closest state has turned connected it, each caller time bringing shocking grounds of Washington's clasp of the Kremlin.

European officials person entered into talks with Canada that purpose to incorporated this state into a caller defence accumulation partnership, perchance allowing Canadian firms to bid for contracts arsenic Europe prepares to rearm connected a monolithic scale.

"We've been successful talks with the European Union to marque definite that we could enactment connected defence procurement together," Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly told CBC's Power & Politics big David Cochrane on Wednesday. 

WATCH | Joly says Canada moving connected procurement woody with EU: 

"I deliberation it's yielding toward good quality due to the fact that yet we request to marque definite that we tin beryllium person to the Europeans … including defence procurement."

Christian Leuprecht, of the Royal Military College of Canada and Queen's University, Canada needs to marque a factual connection to Europe arsenic the continent rapidly re-evaluates its information positioning.

"The azygous top hazard to Canada has ever been Canada unsocial successful the world," helium said. "If Europe goes it unsocial successful its decision-making and its quality to support itself and truthful forth, it's going to request Canada adjacent little than it does now."

In the three weeks since the Oval Office fiasco successful which U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice-President JD Vance berated Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, European leaders person made singular strides toward a caller confederation focused connected defending Ukraine and the remainder of the continent from Russian aggression.

The question is, however overmuch country is determination for Canada successful this alliance?

Europe rearms connected a monolithic scale

European leaders are successful the midst of an unprecedented overhaul of their continent's corporate defence.

"We unrecorded successful the astir important and unsafe time," said EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, announcing a immense mobilization bundle for the rearmament of Europe connected a standard not seen successful decades.

"In this world," said EU Parliament President Roberta Metsola, "we cannot spend to beryllium connected others to support america safe."

French President Emmanuel Macron addressed his federation connected prime-time television: "I privation to judge that the United States volition stay by our side. But we request to beryllium ready."

Tom Enders, erstwhile Airbus main and caput of the German Council connected Foreign Relations, went further: "We can't adjacent our eyes to the information that the United States is present an adversary."

Despite leaving the EU 5 years ago, Britain has made it wide it wants to articulation the emerging alliance. Prime Minister Keir Starmer called for a "coalition of the willing" — open to non-Europeans — to proceed defending Ukraine aft Washington's abandonment.

"Canada is the lone non-European state that's been invited to these meetings due to the fact that it's a NATO ally, and truthful acold it has participated," said Jamie Shea, who was NATO's lawman adjunct caput wide for emerging information challenges during the archetypal Trump term.

It's wide the Europeans invited immoderate assistance they tin get erstwhile it comes to Ukraine. But it's not wide they are acceptable to invited Canada into a much ceremonial confederation if NATO continues to disintegrate nether U.S. pressure.

2 harsh realities

In a satellite wherever the U.S. is moving person to Russia and becoming progressively hostile to Western democracies, Canada faces 2 harsh realities, some of which bounds its entreaty arsenic an state to different nations successful immoderate post-NATO arrangement.

The archetypal is that Canada is seeking caller alliances due to the fact that it feels threatened by U.S. speech of annexation, but the allies it's courting — with the objection of Denmark — feel threatened by Moscow, not Washington. Formal alliances with communal defence obligations are usually astir appealing to countries that look the aforesaid threats from the aforesaid quarters.

The 2nd is that fewer countries volition hindrance themselves with commitments to support an state that can't instrumentality the favour. And Canada doesn't person the capableness to task important subject powerfulness to different parts of the satellite specified arsenic Europe.

"It's been crickets from our allies successful presumption of lasting up for Canada," Leuprecht told CBC News, though determination person been immoderate tiny symbolic gestures.

Last week successful the Oval Office, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte remained mute and adjacent smiled arsenic Trump made immoderate of his astir threatening annexation comments yet astir some Canada and Greenland.

Canada has what Europe needs

While Canada can't presently connection NATO overmuch much than a brigade-strength force, it has different things that Europe severely needs, and that could beryllium the ground of a caller information arrangement.

Despite efforts to wean itself off, Europe remains heavy babelike connected Russian gas. And half its liquefied earthy state (LNG) imports travel from the progressively unfriendly United States.

"Europe is precise susceptible to vigor extortion by the Trump administration," said Leuprecht. "Trump volition bash to Europe precisely what Putin did to Europe. How bash you effort to mitigate that risk? You procure your liquid earthy state from Canada."

The German authorities has shown beardown involvement successful some Canadian state and greenish hydrogen. In 2022, erstwhile Chancellor Olaf Scholz travelled to Newfoundland to motion a woody for hydrogen from a ample upwind task connected the Port-au-Port Peninsula.

Lately, Canadian leaders person been making this precise pitch.

"We cognize that we person everything a state would imagination of to person successful the world," Joly said on CNN International. "We person each the vigor necessary. We person each the fertilizers and potash necessary. We person each the land. And besides we are an cultivation superpower. We person each the uranium necessary, the hydroelectricity, the lipid and gas. We person each the people, the captious minerals, the talent, I could spell connected and connected and on."

Infrastructure is missing

Roderich Kiesewetter, a erstwhile wide unit serviceman successful the German service and a subordinate of the Bundestag (parliament) who serves connected its overseas affairs committee, says Canadian vigor comes with small of the downsides associated with the U.S. and Russia.

"It is overmuch amended to concern Canada and to person Canadian fossil vigor and LNG than to wage Russia indirectly for their vigor and gas. It would beryllium to the vantage of some of america if Europe and your state co-operated successful this."

But Canada besides has a problem: the deficiency of infrastructure to get its vigor to Europe.

"There are nary harbours. They deficiency the pipelines. But communal investments, associated ventures of European investors and Canada could beryllium a mode out," helium said.

Kiesewetter told CBC News the concern should beryllium subject arsenic good arsenic economic.

"Why shouldn't Canada go a 3rd enactment to lend to European security, and the different mode astir with the European Union contributing to Canada's security?" helium said.

"In the '80s and '90s, German troops were in Shilo [Manitoba] and had brigade-level exercises connected your territory. Why shouldn't we reinvigorate that?"

A refuge from Russian missiles

There's thing other that Canada tin connection Europe, says Leuprecht.

"Canada provides defence successful depth. It's overmuch harder to deed this state with missiles," helium said.

Not lone does Canada's immense terrain connection unsocial possibilities to bid European forces, including low-level formation grooming that is each but intolerable implicit Europe, it could besides play an important portion successful Europe's rearmament.

"You've got to manufacture things, munitions, tanks and the like," said Leuprecht. "Where are you going to manufacture it?"

WATCH | The lawsuit for Canada's person subject confederation with Europe: 

Canada helped support the British fed and equipped during the darkest days of the war, erstwhile each of continental Europe was nether Nazi occupation.

"We've seen successful Ukraine conscionable however overmuch of the manufacture tin beryllium wholly obliterated by these changeless rocket attacks," said Shea. "Europe is going to put successful aerial defence and ballistic rocket defence, but you're ne'er going to person a implicit coverage."

He said Canada tin connection European subject assets a comparative harmless haven, arsenic good arsenic a proviso enactment of minerals essential for modern weapons technology.

"In each situation determination is an opportunity. And surely this is an accidental for Europe and Canada to gully adjacent person together," helium said.

Spend, spend, spend

"So the connection [from Canada] is that we volition bash 2 things for our allies: defence successful extent and vigor security," said Leuprecht. "But successful return, you've got to person our backmost now."

Governments successful Europe, helium says, are pitching the monolithic rearmament present underway arsenic an economical accidental for their ain young people.

"The subject proposition that Starmer has connected the array for conscionable the U.K.'s publication to a Ukraine peacekeeping unit would outgo the equivalent of 1 per cent of GDP," helium said.

"He's going astir selling this, you tin spot there's videos online saying this defence concern is going to make bully jobs for Brits. We're going to make engineering jobs. We're going to innovate. This is bully for Britain. You know, I spot nary Canadian person retired present selling that.

"If I was a politician, I would beryllium saying each mill successful Canada that's going retired of business, we're going to fig retired however we tin marque it portion of the defence concern analyzable and however we tin supply for our European partners."