Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
I thank the witnesses for being here. It's always a pleasure to have them.
My questions are about our allies' perception, among other things, and they are for all three witnesses.
To begin, I would like to provide some context. I would like to bring up a passage from an article published this weekend whose title focuses on military expenditures and Ottawa's claim that it will meet the NATO target by 2029.
According to the article, Bill Blair said that he expects Canada's defence spending to reach at least 1.75% of GDP by 2029, but that other investments, such as replacing the country's aging submarine fleet or purchasing integrated air and missile defence systems, would probably push this number beyond the recommended 2%.
Minister Bill Blair also said that he thinks that inevitably brings us to over 2% in defence spending, but that he has work to do to be able to convey that to both his own country and to our allies.
Aren't these statements an attempt not to show up completely empty-handed at the Washington summit in July?
What message does that send when the minister has to publicly mention that he has to convince his own department to reach the 2% target?
Does that not give the impression that, at the end of the day, it is not credible as a comment, as an approach to the 2% target?