Freeland says Canada needs more military ‘hard power’ as U.S. looks inward
OTTAWA — Canada’s new foreign policy will involve spending billions on “hard power” military capability because the country can’t rely on an American ally that has turned inward, says Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland.
In a major foreign policy speech in the House of Commons today, Freeland didn’t mention Donald Trump by name, but made an unabashed pitch for the international rules-based order that the U.S. president’s America First policy is attacking.
The speech was meant to foreshadow the release of Wednesday’s defence policy review, when Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan is expected to make the case for billions in new military spending.
“To put it plainly: Canadian diplomacy and development sometimes require the backing of hard power,” Freeland said.