The mission of NATO Association of Canada is to promote peace, prosperity, and security through knowledge and understanding of the importance of NATO.
We strive to educate and engage Canadians about NATO and NATO’s goal of peace, prosperity and security. NATO Association of Canada ensures that we have an informed citizenry able to contribute to discussions about Canada’s role on the world stage. As a leading member of the Atlantic Treaty Association (ATA), NATO Association of Canada has strong and enduring ties with sister organizations in many of the alliance countries, as well as members of NATO’s “Partnership for Peace” and “Mediterranean Dialogue” programmes. The NAOC has had a leading role in the recent transformation and modernization of the ATA, and helped to create and develop the Youth Atlantic Treaty Association (YATA). The NAOC has strong ties with the Government of Canada including Global Affairs Canada and the Department of National Defence. We are constantly working to create and maintain relationships with international organizations such as the World Bank Group, the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development, NATO Headquarters, the International Criminal Court, and other prominent international NGOs and think tanks.
Rachel Potter analyzes the geopolitical fallout of U.S. pressure on Greenland, arguing that it reveals a deeper fragility within NATO and raises a critical question for Canada: can alliance guarantees still be trusted when power begins to override restraint?
What does Mark Carney’s decision to re-engage China signal about Canada’s strategic options in a more coercive global economy? Tasneem Gedi argues that Ottawa’s limited recalibration with Beijing reflects an unavoidable strategy of hedging amid U.S. unpredictability. While such engagement may expand Canada’s room for maneuver in an increasingly coercive global economy, it carries risks and thus must be pursued narrowly, conditionally and in close alignment with Canada’s alliance commitments.
Following the American intervention in Venezuela, Jonah Moffatt assesses the “Trump Corollary” outlined in the 2025 National Security Strategy, and what this hemispheric vison of security means for the long-contested Northwest Passage. He argues that through diplomatic coordination with its Nordic allies, Canada can utilize the forum and frameworks of NATO to protect its national interests while emerging as a leader of multilateralism in a time of uncertainty.
As North Korea’s military cooperation with Russia intensifies, security dynamics in the Indo-Pacific and Europe are increasingly intertwined. Nguyen Bao Han Tran analyzes how these developments have accelerated Japan’s defence transformation and prompted NATO to rethink its engagement with Indo-Pacific partners, highlighting the growing importance of transregional security coordination.
Cyberspace has become the new realm for battles to be waged, where state/non-state-sponsored groups are exploiting cyber vulnerabilities to control critical state sectors. Cyberattacks have escalated beyond espionage and financial theft to actions that constitute acts of war, endangering national and global security. Salt Typhoon and Volt Typhoon, People’s Republic of China (PRC) sponsored cybergroups, Read More…
On October 1, 2025, the Rideau Club in Ottawa hosted the “EU-Canada – Advancing Defence Industrial Cooperation” event, organized by the Delegation of the European Union to Canada in partnership with the NATO Association of Canada (NAOC). The gathering brought together 86 participants, including representatives from government, industry, academia, and the diplomatic community, to explore Read More…
The dynamics of the international order are evolving, with rising levels of Great Power competition and aggressorsincreasingly challenging NATO’s defences. These changes are making it increasingly important that the Canadian government prioritizes building up domestic defence capabilities to prove itself as a reliable NATO ally and contributor to collective security. In June 2025, NATO allies renewed their Read More…
Below is the NATO Association of Canada’s publication on increasing Canada’s defence spending, with contributions from leading experts. Line of Defence: A Policy Agenda for Canada’s Defence Capabilities
During Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the world was given yet another case to underscore how cyberspace has become a battlefield. In January 2022, researchers uncovered Whisper Gate, a virus that corrupted the master boot record on targeted computers. Following on to February, another malware, Hermetic Wiper, erased data hours before the Russian invasion. Banks, ministries Read More…
Since the early 1950s, Canada has consistently deployed elements of the Canadian Army, the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), and the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) in support of NATO operations. All military acts, be they waging war or preparing for it, are in furtherance of political objectives. In this vein, Canadian force commitments to NATO Read More…