Close X
Tuesday, November 12, 2024
ADVT 
National

Harper defends defence budget against NATO criticism

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 03 Sep, 2014 07:48 AM
    LONDON - Prime Minister Stephen Harper says people should be talking about what Canada has contributed to international military missions and not necessarily how much the country spends on defence.
     
    His government is under pressure from allies, notably the U.S. and Britain, to boost the defence budget in light of the ongoing crisis in Ukraine and the rising threat in Syria and Iraq posed by the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant.
     
    He says the West cannot afford to sit still in the face of the naked brutality shown by the Islamist insurgents.
     
    Harper says the murder of U.S. journalist Steven Sotloff is just the tip of the iceberg and ordinary people are suffering the same fate in regions controlled by the extremists.
     
    Despite the crisis, he says Canada will continue to be frugal in its defence spending.
     
    The federal government earmarks about one per cent of the country's gross domestic product on the military, which is about half what NATO expects.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Fraud trial of ex-Quebec lieutenant-governor Lise Thibault to resume Oct. 2

    Fraud trial of ex-Quebec lieutenant-governor Lise Thibault to resume Oct. 2
    QUEBEC - The fraud trial of former Quebec lieutenant-governor Lise Thibault will resume Oct. 2.

    Fraud trial of ex-Quebec lieutenant-governor Lise Thibault to resume Oct. 2

    Judge allows man charged in beating death in Halifax to fire lawyer

    Judge allows man charged in beating death in Halifax to fire lawyer
    A man accused in the fatal beating of a gay rights activist in Halifax has been granted his request to fire his lawyer.

    Judge allows man charged in beating death in Halifax to fire lawyer

    Inquiry into deadly mall collapse to report Oct. 15 in Elliot Lake, Ont.

    Inquiry into deadly mall collapse to report Oct. 15 in Elliot Lake, Ont.
    TORONTO - The public inquiry into a deadly mall collapse in northern Ontario will issue its final report next month.

    Inquiry into deadly mall collapse to report Oct. 15 in Elliot Lake, Ont.

    'I lived out my life's dream:' Canadian cowboy finishes long ride from Calgary to hometown in Brazil

    'I lived out my life's dream:' Canadian cowboy finishes long ride from Calgary to hometown in Brazil
    A Canadian cowboy who has completed a 16,000-kilometre horseback journey to Brazil says he was overcome with emotion at trail's end.

    'I lived out my life's dream:' Canadian cowboy finishes long ride from Calgary to hometown in Brazil

    New Democrats call on director of public prosecutions to review Duffy case

    New Democrats call on director of public prosecutions to review Duffy case
    The NDP is asking Canada's director of public prosecutions to look at the evidence collected by the RCMP in the Mike Duffy case to determine if charges should be laid against other people as well.

    New Democrats call on director of public prosecutions to review Duffy case

    NATO struggles to define collective defence in the age of cyberwarfare

    NATO struggles to define collective defence in the age of cyberwarfare
    Keystrokes could soon replace Kalashnikovs as the harbinger of future wars once NATO leaders endorse an updated policy that places catastrophic cyberattacks in the same league as real-world bombs and bullets.

    NATO struggles to define collective defence in the age of cyberwarfare