“We are heading in the right direction in Afghanistan,” U.S. Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Michèle Flournoy told the Senate Armed Services Committee on 15 June. “We are regaining the initiative and the insurgency is beginning to lose momentum.” (Jared Allen & Roxana Tiron, “After setbacks, Hoyer hints Dems’ support for Afghanistan is slipping,” The […]
Archive | Blog
RSS feed for this sectionCanada should stay in Afghanistan: Ignatieff
Canadian military personnel should remain in Afghanistan as military and police trainers following the 2011 end of the Kandahar mission, Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff has declared (Joan Bryden, “Ignatieff: Canadian trainers should stay in Afghanistan,” Globe and Mail, 15 June 2010). The new Liberal position, which was floated two weeks ago by Bob Rae, was […]
New Navy mascot needs name
The Canadian Navy is said to face serious recruiting, morale, and (according to its commander, although not the Minister of National Defence) budgetary problems. And what better way to respond than to create a new furry mascot for the embattled element? Officially, the Navy describes the new “recruit” as “a communication tool developed to help […]
Joint Strike Fighter purchase could cost $16 billion
The Globe and Mail is reporting that the estimated full cost of the government’s plan to buy 65 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters is $16 billion (Daniel Leblanc, “Harper bending to U.S. on sole-source fighter purchase, documents reveal,” Globe and Mail, 11 June 2010): Officials at National Defence and Public Works refused Thursday to discuss the […]
DND wants to skip competition, buy Joint Strike Fighter
Le Devoir reports that the Department of National Defence wants to skip a competition to choose a replacement for the CF-18 Hornet and quickly sign a deal to buy the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (Alec Castonguay, “Avions de chasse: l’armée a fait son choix,” Le Devoir, 7 June 2010). According to the newspaper, […]
And the big fool said to push on
More talk of retaining a Canadian military role in Afghanistan following the scheduled end of the Kandahar mission in 2012 (Matthew Fisher, “Canada could fill training role in Afghanistan post-2011, MPs say,” Canwest News Service, 3 June 2010): Liberal foreign affairs critic Bob Rae has provided the strongest indication yet that a deal may be […]