Defence Minister Anand names defence procurement, industry relations director
National Defence Minister Anita Anand now has a director of defence procurement and industry relations in her office, hiring Thomas Gagné to take on the new title. Previously, Léo Newman, who left the minister’s office in August, tackled the procurement and industry files as a senior policy adviser. Gagné started on the job last week, […]
New operations director on deck in Minister Sajjan’s office
International Development Minister Harjit Sajjan scooped up Emily Heffernan from National Defence Minister Anita Anand’s team to take over as his new director of operations in mid July. Heffernan, who had been deputy director of communications to Anand since just after the 2021 federal election, fills a vacancy left by Sher Rodrigo, who exited Sajjan’s […]
Some MPs hope for more transparency on Canada’s military response to invasion of Ukraine
With media reports of Canadian special forces troops operating on the ground in Ukraine and the announcement of successive military deployments in response to Russia’s invasion, there has been limited willingness for increased parliamentary consultations—though some MPs are hoping that will change. While the deployment of the Canadian Forces is under the executive’s jurisdiction, successive […]
Influx of women into nuclear disarmament gives us hope, unless they work for a NATO country
EDMONTON—At 10 a.m. on Aug. 4, the fourth day of the month-long Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference, Canadian Ambassador Leslie Norton stepped to the green marble podium of the UN General Assembly in New York and delivered a speech on behalf of 67 nations. A maple leaf broach emblazoned on her jacket, the ambassador called […]
Cost of war in Ukraine is rising, and Canada missed a key opportunity to stymie Russia’s tap
OTTAWA—On Aug. 4, Minister of National Defence Anita Anand held a press conference in Toronto wherein she announced that the Canadian military would resume training Ukrainian soldiers. In September 2015, Canada began deploying combat instructors to Ukraine as part of Operation Unifier. Since then, it is estimated that Canada has trained more than 33,000 Ukraine […]
‘Timing is essential’: quick delivery of arms needed ahead of ‘intense’ fighting, says new Ukrainian ambassador
With “intense” fighting expected in the coming months, Ukraine’s new ambassador says prompt delivery of arms is crucial as negotiations with Russia will happen on the battlefield. A first-time diplomat, Ukrainian Ambassador Yulia Kovaliv has the arduous task of keeping Ottawa’s focus on aiding in Ukraine’s war effort amid domestic pressures. That task has even […]
Breaking down Defence Minister Anand’s 21-member team
Hill Climbers is overdue for a full dive into Defence Minister Anita Anand’s now 21-member ministerial office, where Jonathan Salna is the most recent addition as executive assistant to the minister’s chief of staff, Mike Power. Salna joined Anand’s team in April after a year as a legislative assistant to Ontario Liberal MP Marcus Powlowski. […]
Liberals should define Poilievre juggernaut now, or risk losing next election, say top political strategists
With the presumed Conservative leadership front-runner Pierre Poilievre widely expected to become party leader on Sept. 10, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberals should start to define their future opponent now before he gets a chance to define himself, say top political players. “In our day and age, the velocity of politics is much faster than […]
Peacekeeping commitments continue to go unmet as Canada lags on long-promised Quick Reaction Force
Ottawa’s once-trumpeted return to United Nations peacekeeping has gone by the wayside as the Canadian government still hasn’t fulfilled a 2017 pledge for a Quick Reaction Force and has only a scattering of personnel assisting UN peace operations around the world. With added focus on Canada’s military contributions following Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, […]
Delivery timelines for vital defence procurements haven’t changed since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
The federal government has spotlighted a need to increasingly focus on Canada’s defence, but there hasn’t been any changes to when consequential purchases will be delivered to the military. In response to an Order Paper question from Conservative MP Kerry-Lynne Findlay (South Surrey-White Rock, B.C.), the Department of National Defence said it had “not accelerated […]
