The Torch
Illuminating Security and Defence Issues
Canada
Should Canada Join the JEF?
11 May, 2026
On 26th March, Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada, participated in a virtual meeting of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF), the ten-country rapid response coalition dedicated to security in the High North. Following this, Gen. Jennie Carnigan, Canadian Chief of the Defence Staff, met with counterparts from JEF nations in London in early April. These actions suggest an increasing likelihood that Canada will join the JEF ...
Defence chief set to pitch ‘options’ for massive troop surge as military strains under its own limits
11 May, 2026
Gen. Jennie Carignan will present strategies to drastically expand CAF, but current targets remain elusive....
Why Canada is seeing its biggest military recruitment surge in 30 years
11 May, 2026
For decades, Canada was seen as a global laggard in defence funding, and just two years ago, recruitment was so dire that a former defence minister warned the armed forces were in a "death spiral". Now, the Canadian army is growing at a pace not seen in decades, reaching its highest number of recruits in 30 years and potentially reversing the chronic personnel shortage that has plagued the country's military....
Canada’s $150-billion challenge: How to build a homegrown defence sector and fast
8 April, 2026
Ottawa aims to prioritize domestic companies for military spending, if capacity and procurement hurdles can be overcome....
A Steep Climb: Financing Canada’s NATO Commitment while Maintaining Fiscal Discipline
8 April, 2026
...This Commentary investigates the fiscal implications of meeting the NATO defence target by 2035 and outlines the challenges higher defence spending poses to federal finances. It also looks at the federal government’s options to meet the target while maintaining a sustainable fiscal regime....
Cold front: Inside NATO’s race to secure the Arctic
8 April, 2026
Canada is learning how to defend its vast, frigid Far North....
Canada Is Already at War with the US—We Just Don’t Know It Yet
10 March, 2026
IN HISTORY’S LONG arc, Canada is but a glimmer of a nation. And whereas there was a time when the accident of our favourable geography led us to believe that our existence would be eternal, regardless of how much or how little we invested in the trappings of self-reliance, that is decidedly no longer the case....
Canada seals deal on EU defence procurement as Munich summit tests transatlantic ties
10 March, 2026
Canada has officially signed onto the European defence procurement program it announced it would join last summer, as Washington’s upending of geopolitics overshadows the world’s top security conference....
Canada’s Defence Industrial Strategy
10 March, 2026
As the Ministers responsible for Canada’s national defence; research, innovation and industrial development; and defence acquisitions, we are honoured to present Canada’s Defence Industrial Strategy....
Canada’s New Defence Strategy Is Bold and Unprecedented. Will It Work?
10 March, 2026
Eight experts break down the plan’s strengths and weaknesses....