Month: July 2019

Canada’s (missing) foreign policy

Two days ago I said that "there is a real, measurable difference between the Conservatives and the Trudeau Liberals on important vital strategic issues. Justin Trudeau and Chrystia Freeland have failed pretty much every test, including renegotiating NAFTA. Why would anyone trust them with the reins of government again?" Then, yesterday I said "Canada and Canadians, and liberals and democrats … Continue reading Canada’s (missing) foreign policy →

War in the Grey Zone (2) ~ The Battle for Hong Kong

The South China Morning Post reports on an incident that took place a couple of days ago at Hong Kong's international airport. The video clips show that it was, actually a bit of a sideshow in a large and otherwise largely peaceful and incident-free protest in the airport's arrivals hall. It appears to have started … Continue reading War in the Grey Zone (2) ~ The Battle for Hong Kong →

What Canada needs

Just the other day I suggested that everyone, including Canada, will have to adapt to whatever happens in the United Kingdom over the next 100(-) days. John Ibbitson, writing in the Globe and Mail, picks up on that and puts some flesh on the bare bones of my concerns. "On Oct. 21, voters will choose … Continue reading What Canada needs →

More about ships (My plan (4))

There is an interesting discussion, over in Army.ca, about the current "tanker war" in the Persian Gulf-Straits of Hormuz-Gulf of Oman region. One participant raises the very, very valid point that limited defence budgets mean that some countries (Britain and Canada come to mind very quickly) cannot afford large enough fleets of first-rate, general-purpose combat … Continue reading More about ships (My plan (4)) →

Middle power?

Professor Roland Paris, of the University of Ottawa, who was formerly the foreign policy advisor to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and who has written a lot about Canada in the world, was interviewed, recently, on Australia's ABC Radio. It's a nearly one-hour-long piece, Professor Paris is on for about 10 minutes, at the beginning, and … Continue reading Middle power? →

A bloody disgrace

This story, by veteran journalists Stephen Chase and Robert Fife in the Globe and Mail, is very disturbing. David Mulroney, who I have cited often in these pages, is a distinguished Canadian scholar and public servant who has served at the very highest levels in the Privy Council Office and as Canada's ambassador to China. Now, … Continue reading A bloody disgrace →

Good to see …

These are some recent pictures of the ground-crew (is the proper term deck-crew?) load crew* of HMCS Halifax mounting (and arming?) a Mk 46 torpedo on a brand new CH-148 Cyclone helicopter:   HMCS Halifax is, currently, deployed on Op REASSURANCE where she will replace HMCS Toronto in the Mediterranean and Black Seas. 'The Cyclone was, … Continue reading Good to see … →

Good luck

The Globe and Mail reports that "Boris Johnson has won the race to become the leader of Britain’s Conservative party and he’s now set to take over as Prime Minister from Theresa May on Wednesday ... [and] ... The former mayor of London defeated his only rival, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, by 92,153 votes among … Continue reading Good luck →