Golden Dome? ReArm Europe? Canada negotiating military relationships amid trade war, sovereignty concerns

“You can only control what you can control.”
Those were the words from newly minted Defence Minister David McGuinty Wednesday morning on his way into a cabinet meeting after a reporter asked him to respond to U.s President Donald Trump’s price tag to join the Golden Dome. Trump offered Canada a deal to join the North American missile defense system estimated to cost US$175 billion. On social media, Trump priced Canada’s membersip at US$61 Billion or C$84.3 billion
“What we can control here now is decisions around strengthening our sovereignty and our security,” he said.
The Golden Dome, a name that plays off Israel’s Iron Dome, is a project Trump told the Pentagon to pursue. It would employ ground- and space-based weapons to destroy missiles mid-flight.
Canada had expressed interest in joining the project, but a price had never been publicized – at least, not until Tuesday, when Trump laid out his terms on Truth Social.
In the 2024 federal budget, Canada’s Department of National Defence was projected to spend just C$44.2 billion in 2025-26.
Trump offered another price, though not a monetary one: Canada would pay billions so long as it stays “a separate, but unequal, Nation.” But if it allowed the U.S. to consume it, the Golden Dome would be free. He claimed Canada is considering it.
“Canada is an independent, sovereign nation, and it will remain one,” the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement to CTV News responding to the post.
McGuinty told CTV News Canada is continuing its negotiations with the White House – Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc was there this week, he said – as well as the European Union.
Pompeo: ‘I don’t know the source of that number’
Mike Pompeo, Trump’s former secretary of state, said he wasn’t sure where that $61 billion figure came from, but estimated it was a “low” estimate. He also said it he thought it’s worth the investment.
Pompeo took questions from reporters during CANSEC, a military technology convention in Ottawa.
He was also asked if Canadians should feel that their sovereignty is under threat, given Trump’s suggestion Canada should no longer exist as a country.
“No,” he said. “Canada is going to do all the things necessary to protect its sovereignty. I’m sure of it.”… Source: ctvnews.ca/