On this, I had the pleasure of being a part of the Canadian delegation that recently went to Boston to sign an agreement with other coastal Arctic countries. I am referring here to the Arctic Coast Guard Forum. Through this agreement, all of the signatory countries have committed to working together to assess operational needs or gaps in services, and also to share best practices.
If, for instance, we carry out an environmental intervention exercise in a given location and another country feels it must do the same a few hundred kilometres way, we can do a joint exercise that will be more effective, as well as share the lessons learned and benefit from them.
You also mentioned the navy and the patrol vessels in the Arctic. Every additional ship in the Arctic is important. We have already begun talks with our National Defence colleagues to optimize the presence of Canadian government vessels in the Arctic. When these ships are put into service, we are going to see to it that they are deployed in strategic locations in order to ensure the best possible coverage and the best return on those investments.