The leader of the official opposition party, poised to win an upcoming election, declared plans on Monday to reduce foreign aid in order to strengthen Canada's presence in the Arctic and enhance regional security.
Highlighting U.S. President 's threats against Canada over defense spending, Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre emphasized the need to bolster Canada's defense capabilities in the Arctic due to potential Russian threats. Poilievre proposed establishing a new military base, increasing the number of local Inuit rangers to 4,000, and acquiring two additional polar icebreakers.
These initiatives, Poilievre explained in Iqaluit, would be funded by significant cuts to foreign aid, redirecting resources from "wasteful and corrupt" grants to projects at home, without specifying further details.
In contrast to the U.S. actions of reducing foreign aid, Canada allocated approximately $11.2 billion in the 2022-23 fiscal year to fund nearly 3,000 projects in over 100 countries.
Pre-election polls indicate the Conservative Party's strong position to potentially unseat Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberals, in power for nine years. A general election must be held by late October, though it could occur sooner.
The office of International Development Minister Ahmed Hussen was unavailable for immediate comment.