Jonah Moffatt is a Junior Research Fellow at the NATO Association of Canada and a recent Honours graduate in Political Science from the University of Manitoba. His academic and professional work focuses on Canadian foreign policy, NATO and transatlantic security, Arctic geopolitics, and hybrid warfare. As a 2024 alumnus of the NATO Field School and Simulation Program, he gained first-hand insight into alliance diplomacy and the strategic challenges facing NATO, alongside practical experience in negotiation, mediation, and decision-making. Working in the NATO and Canada stream, Jonah analyzes geopolitical developments to produce clear assessments of North Atlantic security and Canada’s role in the alliance. He is particularly interested in how Canada can strengthen its position as a diplomatic actor within NATO amid a shifting international order.
How does Russia fund its war economy? In this piece, Jonah Moffatt examines how Russian influence in the African Sahel has created sanction-proof revenue streams that allow Moscow to fuel the war in Ukraine, while contributing to a climate of instability in NATO’s backyard. He argues that Canada, a leader in international mining, can counter Russia’s destabilizing influence in Africa by increasing economic partnerships with Sahelian states, emerging as an unlikely leader of NATO’s southern strategy.
As Ottawa revisits its commitment to purchase 88 F-35A fighter jets, Jonah Moffatt argues that renewed hesitation signals strategic indecision and that a mixed fleet including the less advanced Saab JAS-39 Gripen would dilute Canadian airpower. If Canada seeks to lead within NATO and fulfil its middle-power ambitions, it is necessary to ground credibility in capability and avoid prioritizing political considerations over long-term security interests.
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.
