Evidence of meeting #41 for National Defence in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was north.
A recording is available from Parliament.
12:50 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal John McKay
That's right.
Madame Mathyssen, you have two and a half minutes, please.
12:50 p.m.
NDP
Lindsay Mathyssen NDP London—Fanshawe, ON
General Semianiw, you were talking about the opportunities to invest in the Arctic economically. As we look at threats to our Arctic, it is for that commercial opportunity that's to be taken, except that ultimately I think we also need to be cautious and the government needs to be cautious of its own exploitation of those natural resources on ultimately indigenous sovereign land. How do we balance that, and is that the role of the military there as well?
12:50 p.m.
LGen (Ret'd) Walter Semianiw
I think that's a great question.
To begin with, as I mentioned, perhaps some of the pieces of the answer could be to stand up indigenous units in the north that are commanded and controlled by indigenous folks and not by people from the south. We do this right now. That's the way the Ranger program is organized.
Yes, you could stand up indigenous organizations across the north, which would help to empower what happens across the north. However, if you take a look at the news right now, I think you'll see that Tuktoyaktuk is starting to fall into the ocean. I don't know if you've seen that.
There's a lot going on across the north that I think the government can look into and invest in aside from the military. It already has pieces of the military, but it could do more in the north to support Canadians in the north.
Canadians also live in the north. Most Canadians who live in the south don't seem to remember that or think about that much. They are Canadians and they need our support more than people do in the south. How do you do that economically, building infrastructure, supporting socially what's going on in the north, promoting it and ensuring that it does remain unique in the many ways that it is?
12:55 p.m.
NDP
Lindsay Mathyssen NDP London—Fanshawe, ON
In terms of that NORAD modernization and the supremacy of ensuring that everything we do in the modernization is also—as you had mentioned—in terms of climate change, telecommunications and the advancement of that infrastructure are key. Do you see the modernization of NORAD doing that?
12:55 p.m.
LGen (Ret'd) Alain J. Parent
A big majority of the funds for the NORAD modernization were for infrastructure. I think they're looking at it in a green way. Everything that is being looked at is towards the goal of the emissions target, the gas emissions. It's going to take longer, again, but I think it needs to be done. I believe it's being looked at with this in mind as well with the indigenous reconciliation in mind.
12:55 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal John McKay
Thank you very much.
I had rather hoped that we could get through this round with full time to each member. I'm thinking that we will do three minutes for the Conservatives and three minutes for the Liberals and call it a day. That way we won't upset all the translation, etc.
Is that fine with you folks? Even if it's not, it is. There we are.
Ms. Gallant, you have three minutes.
12:55 p.m.
Conservative
Cheryl Gallant Conservative Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON
Does the technology for airborne detection of submarines under the ice exist?
12:55 p.m.
LGen (Ret'd) Alain J. Parent
We have aircraft that do anti-submarine warfare right now with the CP‑140 Aurora and the Cyclone, so from the air to under the sea, yes, it does exist.
12:55 p.m.
Conservative
Cheryl Gallant Conservative Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON
Would drones be able to be outfitted with that type of technology?
12:55 p.m.
LGen (Ret'd) Alain J. Parent
Yes, there's definitely research being done and products being delivered to provide ASW in an unmanned platform right now.
12:55 p.m.
Conservative
Cheryl Gallant Conservative Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON
Canada appears to be abandoning the only Arctic air refuelling station in Canada, in the whole Arctic, in Inuvik. How will that impact our response times should a threat actually emanate over the Arctic?
12:55 p.m.
LGen (Ret'd) Alain J. Parent
Are you talking about an airborne response?
12:55 p.m.
LGen (Ret'd) Alain J. Parent
If a station runs out of fuel, this is where the tanker comes into place, bringing fuel from the south and staying with the fighters on station for as long as possible. The more you have, the more you stay airborne, because you can have a rotation of tankers that relieve tankers, and then you have a rotation of fighters relieving fighters.
12:55 p.m.
Conservative
Cheryl Gallant Conservative Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON
Can the Cyclones be refuelled in the air?
12:55 p.m.
LGen (Ret'd) Alain J. Parent
No.
12:55 p.m.
Conservative
Cheryl Gallant Conservative Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON
With respect to the planned Nanisivik refuelling station, which was supposed to be a full military base originally, we recently learned that it's only going to be available four weeks of the year. Will that impact our ability to respond from a military point of view to a maritime threat?
12:55 p.m.
LGen (Ret'd) Alain J. Parent
There are two ways to look at it. One is that it affects our ability to respond. The other is that at least we can do it one month of the year.
We cannot do anything right now.
12:55 p.m.
LGen (Ret'd) Walter Semianiw
I would quickly add that I think you have to ask whether it was even being used at this point in time. I think you're going to find it wasn't being used all that much to start with, so what would be the impact of going from 12 months to one month? It would be minimum, marginal.
12:55 p.m.
Conservative
Cheryl Gallant Conservative Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke, ON
What is the likelihood that the United States would deploy BMD, ballistic missile defence, to defend a Canadian city?
12:55 p.m.
LGen (Ret'd) Alain J. Parent
It depends.
12:55 p.m.
Conservative