International and Domestic Arctic Assessment: Canada’s Arctic Threats and Vulnerabilities - Lindsay Speirs, Sasha Tiaglei and Andrea Charron

Given geopolitical and geophysical changes coupled with a lack of sustained attention to and funding for the Arctic on the part of successive Governments of Cana- da (GoC), the readiness of the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) to mitigate threats in, through, and to the Arctic (Lackenbauer, 2021)i is in question. [...] Sovereignty i Whitney Lackenbauer (2021) notes the importance of evaluating threats through the Arctic (using the Ocean as a short cut), to the Arctic (originating from outside the region into the region, such as foreign interference) and in the Arctic (example: permafrost melt). [...] However, it is quite clear that the majority of safety and security issues that are most pressing in the Canadi- an Arctic are not in the purview of the military to solve but the CAF’s size, planning expertise, strategic lift capa- bilities and persistent presence in the Arctic mean that it is often aware of and/or called upon to help coordinate a response to these non-defence issues. [...] Arctic NATO allies, for example, are of illegal and unregulated (IUU) fishing and the race expected to take the lead in the Arctic including Can- for protein, which will spill into the Arctic despite the ada, while southern European NATO states take the current ban on fishing in the Central Arctic Ocean, lead in the Mediterranean. [...] The best defence is for the Government Iceland, in theory, will hand the Chairship to Russia, of Canada to invest the necessary funds to entice Ca- now is the time to plan and coordinate the 13 years of nadian industries to partner and codevelop sustainable Chairs on environmental protection and sustainable projects.