Feds boost spending on northern military hubs to $2.67B, announce locations for 3 of them

Liny Lamberink · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 06, 2025 12:18 PM EST | Last Updated: 6 hours ago

The national authorities is importantly expanding the magnitude of wealth it's spending to physique a web of bluish subject hubs from $218 cardinal to $2.67 billion. 

National Defence Minister Bill Blair made the announcement successful Iqaluit connected Thursday, saying the archetypal of respective hubs would beryllium established successful Nunavut's superior arsenic good arsenic successful Yellowknife and Inuvik successful the Northwest Territories. 

"Climate alteration is causing the Arctic to lukewarm astatine 4 times the planetary average," helium said. "It is creating increasing entree to Arctic resources and shipping lanes that, unfortunately, is enticing different adversarial nations to prosecute successful heightened contention present successful this region." 

Blair did not supply a timeline for erstwhile the 3 bluish operational enactment hubs would beryllium operational. He said the authorities felt a "strong consciousness of urgency" and that the 3 chosen locations are already considered "forward-operating" locations with "significant" subject infrastructure the authorities plans to physique on. 

"We tin spot the imaginable of the forward-operating determination infrastructure that's presently successful place," helium said from wrong a subject craft hangar successful Iqaluit. "But it's not up to the ngo that we're present giving the Armed Forces to run much efficaciously here." 

Hubs volition dwell of airstrips, logistics facilities and instrumentality and are intended to enactment subject craft operations and besides service arsenic retention for instrumentality and spare parts, according to a quality merchandise from the Department of National Defence. 

Blair said the hubs volition beryllium designed to accommodate and grow, with infrastructure that tin beryllium rapidly activated for "swift action."

The northern operational enactment hubs are a pillar of the defence strategy the national authorities released past twelvemonth and it initially said it would spend $218 cardinal implicit 20 years to physique a web of them. The $2.67 cardinal is expected to beryllium spent implicit the aforesaid clip frame. Asked wherefore the authorities was investing much than 10 times much wealth into the network, Blair said the determination stems from conversations being had with bluish people, the bluish premiers and Canadians. 

"They person an anticipation that we're going to put successful our country," helium said. 

"I deliberation Canadians privation america to put successful our defence and our spot and resiliency to asseverate our sovereignty, we intelligibly should not beryllium relying connected anyone other to support our nation. It's our occupation and we're going to bash it." 

Nunavut Premier P.J. Akeeagok, meanwhile, said that "jabs astir Canada arsenic the 51st State" reenforce the value of a stronger subject beingness successful the Arctic. He said much attraction is being paid to the circumpolar satellite and that the "geopolitical scenery is shifting rapidly" 

Akeeagok besides said the hub successful Iqaluit would beryllium multi-purpose – serving arsenic a retention spot for hunt and rescue instrumentality and paving the mode for much businesslike rescue operations that would prevention lives.

In an emailed statement, N.W.T. Premier R.J. Simpson thanked the national authorities for its investment, saying the enlargement of the military's beingness strengthens Canada's "strategic presence" successful the Arctic and reinforces its committedness to bluish communities. 

"Sovereignty is not conscionable a conception — it is thing we asseverate each time by surviving and moving here, gathering beardown and sustainable communities, and driving economical stableness done assets development, which operates year-round and is captious to the Northern economy," helium said. 

He besides said that semipermanent information successful the Arctic would necessitate "sustained investment."