I think it's a really good question. Certainly it's something that the forces and I think Canada, at some level, have been struggling with for some time: what is the way to the Pacific? Certainly the navy was rebalanced with the Canadian patrol frigates, the submarines, to try to have a more significant naval presence on the west coast than we had previously, relative to the size of the nation. Because we are a Pacific nation, that's not new for Canada. So how do you strike that balance?
The Arctic question is an intriguing one as well because it's one where readiness in a Canadian context in the Arctic does mean the kinds of investments that are being talked about or implemented around naval patrol vessels and so on. But it also means that interdepartmental capability being maximized, which I spoke to earlier. The Canadian Coast Guard has a tremendous presence there, with seven ice-breakers up there every year, kind of on an ongoing basis. Are we maximizing that investment? We're certainly maximizing it from a scientific and other points of view, but are we maximizing it from the perspective of a Canadian sovereignty scenario? Are they doing enough hydrographic science and fisheries patrols? Is there a need for the RCMP as well? It cries out to some extent for kind of a whole-of-government approach big time. That, in my view, will be necessary as the naval and other capabilities of the Canadian Forces come into play. In other words, it's going to be essential to integrate those four to six arctic patrol vessels with the coast guard fleet.
I think the exercises that have been going on in recent years, on a very regular basis, and the significant presence of the government in the Arctic in the last while, are quite helpful in all of that. I think the Arctic part of the answer is a much more significant interdepartmental collaboration, cooperation, and working together in a meaningful way with the vehicles we have, which include vehicles that aren't all belonging to the Canadian Forces.