More than 3,000 kilometres north of the nation’s capital, soldiers, ships and aircraft of Canada’s Armed Forces gathered this week in one of the most remote areas of the country to answer one question: How would they board a foreign vessel that neither wanted to be seen, nor stopped.
What if the crew of that ship was near sensitive military sites in the North?
It may seem far-fetched. But vessels run routinely through the north with their transponders switched off — largely invisible to other ships, and not necessarily seen by Canada’s satellite and surveillance systems.
The annual exercise is known as Operation Nanook, and took on particular significance this year with a collision of geopolitical changes: China’s growing ambition in the Arctic, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s plans to substantially increase the capabilities of the military and the newly recognized value of minerals in the North.
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Canada’s traditional adversaries have shown growing interest in the North’s rich deposits of critical minerals. Not to mention the opening of new, shorter shipping routes between Asia, North America and Europe through the Northwest Passage as climate change makes for an increasing number of ice-free days.
“That would be Russia and, increasingly, China,” said Stephanie Carvin, a former national security official and now an academic with Carleton University in Ottawa.
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A Russian submarine planted the Russian flag under the North Pole in 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6927395.stm
China’s growing ambition in the Arctic … have shown growing interest in the North’s rich deposits of critical minerals. Not to mention the opening of new, shorter shipping routes between Asia, North America and Europe through the Northwest Passage as climate change makes for an increasing number of ice-free days.
Disgusting warmongering propaganda over nothing.
China and Russia have plenty of their own waters/shores to develop. The only reason they would need to travel through Canadian waters is to deliver stuff to North American east coast. Russian waters are closer to Europe.
If China or Russia develops our resources, it will be because they pay us to. We need to stop tolerating our US military spending for US force amplification is for no reason other than sycophancy. Stop tolerating absurd Arctic defense excuses, or at least frame them as Arctic defense from US.
This is neither disgusting nor warmongering (and, in principal, China should not deliver cheap and unsafe stuff to North America but better reduce their overcapacity and improve consumption at home).
There are many excellent analyses on the issue. As one states, Russia and China are building an Arctic empire:
Canada risks being shut out of critical northern trade routes and resource development opportunities …
Dalziel analyzed nearly 200 posts showing governors celebrating how Chinese imports are improving Russian lives while their natural resources flow exclusively to Beijing’s markets. The governors openly dismiss Western sanctions as ineffective and promote China as a reliable partner during international isolation …
Most concerning for Canada, Russia is leveraging its Arctic territory to build what the study describes as “an authoritarian brand” that courts non-Western partners while explicitly rejecting North American and European influence.
The whole study makes an illuminating read. The author warns that democratic Arctic nations must work together to challenge this authoritarian model. By “reinvigorating their own international engagement” through enhanced co-operation on economic development, science, and Indigenous governance, Canada and its Arctic allies can offer a compelling alternative to centralized, authoritarian control.
in principal, China should not deliver cheap and unsafe stuff to North America but better reduce their overcapacity and improve consumption at home
And after agreeing to your absolute imbecilic absurdity, you will love them forever and stop talking stupid shit about them, right?
We have every right to determine safety regulations here. Other countries are allowed to say that transportation value justifies a one-wheel or murder car, and suicide CO/CO2 poisoning car.
By far the most demonic supremacist portion of your evil statement is that humanist abundance/job creating economics must be attacked to protect our corrupt Oligarchist scarcity and oppressive suppression of opportunity.
Canada risks being shut out of critical northern trade routes and resource development opportunities
- No one is allowed, by treaty, to develop outside of their territorial waters. 2. There is no legal project Canada intends that will ever be stopped by China or Russia. 3. If anyone wants to develop just outside of another nation’s territorial waters, they should get that nation’s cooperation because close market/support access has huge economic benefits compared to distant transport. 4. “The common heritage of all mankind” that is international waters seems like a UN mission to collect proper compensation for mankind. 5. demonic warmongering for supporting US rights to ignore UN, or outright continue direct oppression of Canada’s waters, as the US is a close enough market to bring back resources to. Russia or China is not.
Dalziel analyzed nearly 200 posts showing governors celebrating how Chinese imports are improving Russian lives while their natural resources flow exclusively to Beijing’s markets. The governors openly dismiss Western sanctions as ineffective and promote China as a reliable partner during international isolation …
The retardation of a war on Russia has consequences. But China financing/helping another country develop their resources can be great for both countries. China helping Canada to do the same, instead of gaslighting us into being the 51st state prior to gifting it to US is a viable alternative to the suicide path you want to take us on.
Most concerning for Canada, Russia is leveraging its Arctic territory to build what the study describes as “an authoritarian brand” that courts non-Western partners while explicitly rejecting North American and European influence.
Just listen to your pure disgusting hate. We have the supremacist entitlement to diminish Russia, and if they resist their destruction, they are the authoritarian ones.
democratic Arctic nations must work together
… to ignore all laws and treaties and decency. Ever notice how democracy just leads to total unanimity about the virtues of slavery to US and Israel is?
Confrontation with China? The one country that hasn’t been in any war in the last 50 years and has virtually no history of oversea campaign?
It’s plain to see that there’s some attempt to fearmonger to drive up military investment, at the same time that we are cutting in vital and actually relevant services.
I’m more worried about the US’ foreign policy than either Russia or China. Not even a contest in term of instability factor or aggressive policies.
We are likely going to be pouring a tonne of public money into providing security for a resource supply chain to feed the US, with resource companies likely largely owned or controlled by US interests with profits largely flowing to the US.
Also, kind of funny how “freedom of navigation” is such a clarion call for activity off one coast, but when it comes to our coast that’s opening up as a new trading routes the call changes to urging militarization, defense, and keeping others out.
This is why the ring of fire stuff is so worrying. Steal a bunch of treaty land to appease the Americans.
Russia does claim part of our country.
But yeah China is going to be our ally against the US, this just feels like it’s trying to scare Canadians to the US.
I guess you know the term “whataboutism”, right? It’s very widespread here: -)
I’llreply here again on the irony of accusations of propaganda coming from an account with 850 posts in 7 months seemingly non-stop driving the same agenda.
Funnily enough, whataboutism is exactly the same accusation Hotznplotzn brought up in the last thread on this type of topic where we interacted a few days ago, Hotznplotzn being another account created 7 months ago with 3,200 posts in that time also driving the same agenda.
Almost like you guys are reading from the same manual.
Accusations of “whataboutism” get thrown around by people taking a particular approach any time someone raises a point that isn’t just expanding on the specific focus the accuser wants the interaction to stay on.
So, keep your accusations of “propaganda” for yourself and let some people who aren’t driving an agenda have a normal interaction.
Explain to me what is “whataboutism” here.
“Whataboutism” or “whataboutery” (as in, “but what about X?”) refers to the propaganda strategy of responding to an accusation with a counter-accusation instead of offering an explanation or defense against the original accusation.
My post is very clear. China has no history of oversea military operation. You can argue about creeping boat operations in its own sea, but there is no reasons for us to get in a military conflict with China. I follow up the point with an actual credible threat that is more worthy of discussion than a country is 1. distant & 2. that got a massive economy without getting into any wars.
You’re not making any point here, just crying whataboutism.
How would you explain Chinese activity in the south china sea? Particularly in Philippine territorial waters?
Since you are referencing a specific incident, it would appear you are more familiar with it than me, and I will yield the opportunity to explain it.
China is conducting overseas military operations in the south china sea, contrary to the statement you made above.
