Arctic defence might be part of Carney-Trump trade talks

Arctic security might be a cornerstone of negotiations between Canada and the U.S. as Prime Minister Mark Carney and President Donald Trump put a 30-day deadline on reaching a deal for a new “economic and security relationship” between the two countries.

“I’m looking forward to continuing this work at this summit and in the weeks ahead,” Carney said on social media about the negotiations, which occurred Monday during the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alta., before Trump’s early exit to deal with a war between Iran and Israel.

As part of the negotiations, Canada might commit to building more Arctic security infrastructure and beefing up its overall defence spending, CBC News has reported.

It’s “natural” that Arctic defence is part of those conversations, said retired Col. Pierre Leblanc, a commander of the Canadian Forces Northern Area from 1995 to 2000.

For the U.S., an increased military presence in the Arctic would make a bigger and more effective Golden Dome over North America — a Trump-proposed missile defence system that Canada is in talks to join, Leblanc said.

“Trump is doing us a service by squeezing us to do more on defence,” Leblanc said, noting that for years different U.S. administrations have been “irritated” by the lack of defence spending in Canada.

In the past few years, the federal government made several commitments to national and specifically Arctic security. Arctic operational support hubs were key pillars of the government’s $81.1-billion defence policy that was introduced in April 2024.

Then-defence minister Bill Blair announced on March 6 that those hubs will be built in Iqaluit, Inuvik and Yellowknife at a total cost of $2.67 billion over 20 years.

But Leblanc said these projects won’t compensate for years of federal underspending in defence.

“There are no ifs and buts. Right now, it is time to increase our defence,” he said.

Relations between the U.S. and Canada have deteriorated since Trump was elected in November. The president has mused several times about Canada becoming the 51st state and imposed several packages of tariffs on Canadian goods, including 25 per cent on Canadian automobiles, steel and aluminum; and 10 per cent on energy and potash.

Canada responded with its own retaliatory tariffs, including 25 per cent on $30 billion worth of American imports and another 25 per cent on steel and aluminum.

When asked last Thursday, Premier P.J. Akeeagok declined to comment on the talks between Trump and Carney as he “was not a part” of those conversations.

Located in Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada, Nunatsiaq News is dedicated to covering affairs in Nunavut and the Nunavik territory of Quebec since 1973. It has been a partner to ArcticToday and its predecessors since 2016.