The second decade of the 21st century has been defined by the rise of political newcomers in Europe as mavericks like Emmanuel Macron, Beppe Grillo and Zuzana Caputova have successfully challenged incumbent politicians. Now, the club has a new member: the recently elected president of Ukraine, comedian Volodymyr Zelensky. He won the runoff election against Read More…
NATO is currently at a crossroads, with tensions brewing between allies and some critics questioning the very basis of the alliance’s existence. As Timothy Andrews Sayle demonstrates in his magisterial new book Enduring Alliance: A History of NATO and the Postwar Global Order (Cornell University Press, 2019), these challenges are in fact nothing new. Throughout Read More…
When people talk about NATO, they often refer to the Alliance as a unitary actor that supports certain values and undertakes specific actions. Sometimes they discuss the policies of its member states. There is nothing wrong with referring to NATO as a single actor or as a group of states; an alliance is meant to Read More…
The first proxy war of the Cold War broke out roughly 69 years ago today, on June 25th, 1950, with the invasion of North Korea onto South Korea across the 38th parallel. It was not until the election of Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent in 1948 that Canada changed its character towards Korea and the Read More…
After suspending the INF Treaty, neither Russia nor America wasted much time announcing new missile projects. What are the implications for European security of a new generation of theatre missiles? The Euromissile Crisis of the 1980s has some clues.
In late February 2019, India and Pakistan engaged in a series of aerial border skirmishes. This conflict is historic in that it was the first time two opposing military forces used airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft against each other. The primary function of this type of aircraft is surveillance: monitoring, detecting, and tracking Read More…
Operation IMPACT is currently the largest deployed operation in the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF). The operation consists of Canada’s contribution to global efforts to defeat the threat of Daesh (also known as ISIS or ISIL) in Iraq and Syria. It consists of two phases. The first entailed reversing the territorial gain of Daesh, while the Read More…
In this article, Willow Hillman outlines the controversy surrounding Huawei and the US’ extradition request for Meng Wanzhou, and explains some of the main reasons why this situation matters to Canadians.
In the first episode of “The Water Cooler,” (renamed since recording) Basil Ammane and William Lloyd, with David Lazzam moderating, discuss whether or not U.S. President Donald Trump is good for NATO. After listening, make sure to vote on Twitter or Facebook for the side you agree with. Enjoy! Photo: U.S. Secretary of State Michael Read More…
In order to stay relevant and effective, international organizations and alliances must adapt to present-day challenges. While an organization’s broad mandate and purpose will generally stay the same over time, its objectives and instruments are often revised due to the constantly changing state of international relations. A recent development that has substantially altered global affairs Read More…