A U.S. Defense Department official said Thursday that Canada has “yet to make the hard decisions and tradeoffs needed” to be a “credible” military partner with the United States, escalating its criticism of its North American ally and drawing pushback from the Canadian defence minister.
The comments were made days after Elbridge Colby, the U.S. undersecretary of defence policy, announced Monday on social media that his department was pausing the Permanent Joint Board on Defense “to reassess how this forum benefits shared North American defense.”
The board was established in 1940 and is an advisory forum for U.S.-Canada bilateral defence cooperation.
Prime Minister Mark Carney shrugged off the move on Tuesday, telling reporters he “wouldn’t overplay the importance of this” and that defence cooperation between Canada and the U.S. would continue through joint military operations like NORAD.
But Thursday’s briefing by senior Pentagon officials with reporters made clear the U.S.’s frustrations with Canada are mounting.
“The Department is monitoring Canada’s defense investment and will reengage in this forum when it is possible to have a serious discussion about our mutual security,” one U.S. official said in written remarks provided to several Canadian reporters on background after a lengthy phone briefing, which was off the record.
“Canada has yet to make the hard decisions and tradeoffs needed to put it on track to become a credible partner in the mutual defense of our continent and hemisphere.”
In a statement to Global News, a spokesperson for Defence Minister David McGuinty listed the “historic investments in continental defence, Arctic security, and military readiness” made since Carney became prime minister last year and said progress is being made.
“Increased defence spending is already strengthening warfighting capabilities by moving projects forward across ammunition production, space surveillance, small arms, military communications, naval support, submarine modernization, and long-range patrol aircraft,” spokesperson Maya Ouferhat said.
“Progress is also being made on major Canadian capability projects and domestic procurements, helping equip the Canadian Armed Forces while supporting Canadian industry and jobs.”
F-35 review delays raised
Of particular issue was the ongoing and long-delayed review into Canada’s procurement of F-35 fighter jets, which Carney ordered shortly after becoming prime minister amid escalating trade tensions with the U.S.
Canadian officials including McGuinty have refused to explain why the review remains delayed, while also expressing interest in buying Sweden’s Saab Gripen jets instead.
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Carney ordered the review of the U.S.-made stealth fighter procurement after becoming prime minister in spring 2025 — a move that came after U.S. President Donald Trump launched his trade war against Canada. It missed a self-imposed deadline of summer 2025 and has remained under review since.
“The Canadian government’s delays and lack of transparency around its ongoing F-35 review are just one example of the prioritization of politics over our shared responsibility for North America’s defense,” the U.S. official said. “The Department welcomes a rapid conclusion to this review.”
The statement from McGuinty’s office did not respond to the criticism of the F-35 review delays.
U.S. Ambassador Pete Hoekstra has previously suggested the possibility of Canada backing out of the F-35 contract was part of the reason for a delay in advancing a new trade and security agreement with the U.S.
The U.S. has billed the F-35 as necessary for NORAD integration and defending the Arctic, which has become a key concern for both Canada and the U.S. amid growing Russian and Chinese incursions.
“U.S.-Canada cooperation via NORAD is critical to securing the northern approaches to the U.S. and Canadian homelands, but its mutual benefit depends on Canada’s ability to contribute proportionately,” the U.S. official said.
No roadmap to meeting NATO’s 5% spending target
The official also criticized the lack of a clear roadmap from Canada on how it plans to meet NATO’s new target of spending at least 3.5 per cent of GDP on core defence needs, part of an overall five per cent spending pledge Canada and NATO allies agreed to last year.
“Canada has yet to articulate a path to reach NATO’s new defense spending targets,” the official said. “A plan backed by resourced investments that will put Canada on pace to spend 3.5 per cent on core defense by 2035 would be a good place to start.”
Canada finally reached NATO’s earlier defence spending target of two per cent this year after years of lagging behind the 2014 threshold. Carney said Tuesday that figure is currently tracking at 2.1 per cent.
But the official said Ottawa “has fallen short on deploying the necessary resources to rebuild its armed forces.”
“Canada’s commitment to the 2025 NATO Hague Summit Declaration is only more rhetoric unless matched with resourced investments to fill gaps in priority areas.”
The federal government has announced a slew of spending commitments since last year, including pay raises for Canadian Armed Forces members and upgrades to military bases and housing, which McGuinty’s office highlighted Thursday.
The statement also pointed to other announcements like acquiring a fleet of new River class destroyers for the Navy, shelling out tens of billions of dollars on modernizing NORAD equipment, and plans to soon buy a new fleet of submarines, as well as the newly-launched defence industrial strategy.
“These mark investments to date, as Canada reaches 3.5 (per cent) by 2035, Canada will continue to deliver real capability, strengthen readiness, and support Canadian industry and workers,” Ouferhat said.
A February report from the Parliamentary Budget Office said the government “has not published supporting projection details” for reaching the new NATO spending target by 2035, after last year’s federal budget said Canada was “on a pathway” to do so.
The report estimated that increasing from two per cent to 3.5 per cent on core defence will require an average of approximately $33.5 billion per year in additional cash expenditures over the next 10 years.
In a Toronto Star opinion piece on Monday, former parliamentary budget officer Kevin Page criticized Ottawa for failing to publicly reconcile the cost of elevated defence spending with the need for new revenue.
Page wrote it is “indefensible” that the federal government has not yet produced a clear financial plan for achieving the newer NATO spending target.
Carney said Tuesday that it would be premature to project that far out at this point.
“There’s a couple of reasons why we don’t immediately specify that,” he said. “The core reason is we want to spend the money well.”
—with files from the Canadian Press
