Thank you, Chair.
Listening to the introductory remarks, I can't help but think how timely this study is. Mr. O'Toole said he was surprised by some of the things he heard. Perhaps I'd like to say that I'm not only surprised, but also very concerned.
We seem to be relying and to be quite confident that the international rules-based order based on multilateral treaties will resolve issues of territory or territorial questions in the Arctic. We often talk about how Canada has the longest unprotected border in the world, and everyone thinks of the United States. Notwithstanding the current challenges, I don't think any of us are concerned about that border. It's the Arctic. As you said, it's been icebound, but clearly, we're looking to a future where that may not be the case. This reliance and hope—I made some notes, I wrote down quotes, like “mutual respect”, “built on trust and mutual benefit” when talking about China and Russia....
I don't share the department's confidence. China has done a territorial grab in the South China Sea. Just in this past month, Russia built a bridge across the Kerch Strait and, at the same time, moved five of its largest military vessels from the Caspian Sea into the Sea of Azov and have done a de facto territorial grab of the Sea of Azov, to which they had a limited shoreline. These are countries that do not respect an international, rules-based order.
I understand our hope to rely on people playing nice, but then I also take a look. How many icebreakers do we have? Perhaps whoever could answer that quickly. Do we have three? I understand the Americans—