In the latest example of his turbocharged militarism, a gang of Mark Carney’s ministers has traveled to England to promote arms initiatives.
On Tuesday Defence Minister David McGuinty, Defence Procurement minister Stephen Fuhr, Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon and Industry Minister Mélanie Joly attended the Farnborough International Airshow. The heads of Canada’s Defence Investment Agency, Doug Guzman, and Business Development Bank (BDC), Isabelle Hudon, also travelled to the UK to promote war initiatives.
The four ministers formally announced that Canada would join the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), a UK/Italy/Japan plan to develop a sixth-generation stealth fighter jet. Canada will initially be an “observer” in GCAP, which will spend tens, maybe hundreds, of billions of dollars on developing a more advanced warplane over the next decade. Canada’s role in GCAP is part of Carney’s ever-expanding fighter jet procurement.
By Canada announcing the decision just outside of London, reported Reuters, “Britain’s new government secured an early defence win.” At the same time, Carney’s officials are using the trip to press the new UK government to join its yet to be established “war bank”. BDC President Isabelle Hudon, who is also Canada’s chief negotiator for the Defence, Security and Resilience Bank (DSRB), publicly called on the new UK government to reconsider joining the war bank. “The UK should not only be a member of DSRB, but a founding member,” said Hudon. Apparently, reported The Banker on Wednesday, the new British government is reconsidering joining the war bank.
The Canadian ministers were also in the UK to drum up sales for Canadian arms companies. “More than 150 Canadian companies,” reported the government, are part of “Team Canada” at the Farnborough Airshow, which is a major arms bazaar. As outlined in “Wars shift focus from jets to weapons at giant Farnborough Airshow”, half of the 1,600 exhibitors are arms focused. With fighter jets, missiles and drones on exhibit, billions of dollars in weapons contracts are expected to be finalized at Farnborough.
“Another week another ‘Canadian Pavilion’ is set up at another foreign arms bazaar”, quipped researcher Anthony Fenton in response to a report on Farnborough. The Department of National Defence, Trade Commissioner Service and other government agencies are sponsoring the pavilion. These and many other government agencies – from the Canadian Commercial Corporation to Defence Attachés – have long promoted military exports. But Carney has greatly ramped up Canada’s militarist apparatus.
In recent weeks there’s been a major new major military development almost every day. On Tuesday it was announced Ottawa signed a $1.1 billion contract to upgrade the country’s current submarines while City TV reported Wednesday on the government’s $5 billion Light Armoured Vehicle procurement (it’s on top of the recently announced $2 billion LAV purchase). Last Friday the Serfs podcast posted that “over the past week” Carney made:
17 posts promoting the military industrial complex
6 posts promoting oil and gas interests
1 post talking about the wildfires.
Carney is rapidly militarizing Canada. It must be stopped.
Join several thousand who have emailed Marc Carney, NDP leader Avi Lewis and Green leader Elizabeth May asking them to oppose the costly submarine purchase.
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