U.S. ambassador on Canada’s defence spending | CTV Question Period

we’re going to turn now South of the Border where the stage is getting set for the US presidential elections first debate incumbent President Joe Biden and his Republican rival Donald Trump will be making history as Thursday will Mark the first debate between a sitting president and a former president the CNN presidential debate is shaping up to also be a defining moment in the race where both candidates have little margin for error especially in crucial swing States as the November election approaches there are also concerns about potential foreign interference attempts by adversaries to influence the results us intelligence agencies are watching closely and say they’re ready to alert the public if necessary foreign interference of course and allegations of treason have dominated debate here on Parliament Hill in recent weeks joining me now to talk about all of that is US ambassador to Canada David Cohen Ambassador good to see you as always thanks for coming in it’s great to be here and we’re going to be on the air for two days to cover all of those topics essentially the next three hours and I’m actually going to start off on something even different because we just our audience has just heard from the Secretary General of NATO Yen Stenberg who concluded the interview essentially by saying that despite the fact the world is more insecure he actually does not feel that there is any imminent threat to a NATO member country Visa Visa rather the strength of NATO itself and I wondered if you agreed with that assessment so I I think I do agree with that assessment um I don’t remember a time in my life where the world has been more where there’s been more turmoil in the world more risk in the world but if you look at the NATO countries um I think the NATO countries are in pretty good shape and I think a big part of that is because of the strength and the power of NATO that this Alliance which is I always remind people is a defensive Alliance um and the unity that these that the countries have demonstrated the common commitment to democracy to defending democracy Article Five is incredibly important the the notion that if you invade any NATO country um every inch of any NATO country will be defended by all NATO countries countries it’s a huge deterrent effect and it enables I think folks who live in NATO countries to go to sleep at night feeling a lot better than they would without NATO do you ever see the formal expansion of that arrangement to include countries for example in the Indo Pacific and I ask because it’s something NATO is talking a lot more about given the uh threat that China is posing in particular they’ve talked about alignment but don’t go so far as talk about a formal Arrangement did how do you view it so I I I think it’d be premature for for me to opine on that it’s it is a matter of continuing discussion and I think it’s not insignificant that at the NATO Summit which is um you know which is as you pointed out is scheduled for a couple weeks from now in Washington um the Indo Pacific countries are all invited invited to come to participate to be a part of the conversation and the discussion I do think there’s a growing recognition um that the world is even more interconnected than it was when NATO was formed um and that what’s it what’s a risk in the Indo Pacific what’s at risk in the mid East what’s at risk um in the Arctic um is a risk to is a is a global risk and it’s why we’re I think we’re more focused on the defense um of democracy around the world so but it’s but it’s premature I mean I think there I I think there there will be discussion on potential expansion of NATO in Washington but it’s more likely that discussion is going to be centered around Ukraine right than it is than it’s going to be around the Endo Pacific there will also be a discussion about defense bending the Secretary General told uh told me and I know you’re as familiar as anyone in this country with the nature of that discussion here in the context of Canada is it your expectation or do you have an expectation at all that Canada will present at that Summit in NATO a plan to get to 2% so I and I I every once in a while I have to give you this caveat you need to remember I’ve been here two and a half years now but I’m still just the US ambassador to Canada not a Canadian government official or elected official and I I just point out the US ambassador to Nato comes on quite frequently to call out Canada for not having a plan so that’s the Genesis of my question to you look the United States position is very clear and I think I’ve articulated it before um which is that we while we do think Canada needs to step up and spend more on defense we do not measure Canada’s commitment to to defense by reference to any single metric even the percentage of GDP that you spend on defense um and I I feel even more comfortable um with that statement today because as you point out the Secretary General is here and he said exactly the same thing um applauded Canada for for it for stepping up um for stepping up in Haiti for stepping up um in the for for stepping up in um in lva with the with with the lvia brickade for stepping up in the Arctic Continental defense um and for stepping up and significantly increasing its defense spending over the past few years um I point out that um in this year’s budget which was just passed um spending is up 17.5% in Canada in a budget where total overall spending is Up 3 to 5% so that’s the kind of commitment that we’re looking for and what we’re seeing there have been a lot of discussions about C about Canada’s plan to get to 2% Minister Blair has been quite clear that he knows Canada needs to spend more that he’s working on on ideas to be able to get Canada’s spending up up higher um foreign minister Jolie this week said the same thing we’re working on a plan so I think there will be a plan um and whether it whether it’s presented at the NATO Summit before the NATO Summit after the NATO Summit um I think there will be discussion at a minimum about Concepts and ideas that Canada has to be able to bring its spending at least to the 2% of GDP level I if though that no single metc is the is what you’re judging Canada’s commitment to defense by then why does it matter that there’s a plan because I take your point about Mr Stenberg what he said he was here but he was also explicit to me that he does expect more from Canada and that he does expect a specific plan look I’ve been quite clear on this show and elsewhere um that we’re that we’re looking for Canada to continue to increase its spending on defense um I think like NATO we’re we have we have advocated with Canada that it would be in their best interest to be able to make that commitment with a Time Horizon on it and a reasonable time Horizon on it but again we’re I mean we we look at the ways the multiple ways in which Canada has stepped up and we’re not alone in this I mean again the Secretary General applauded Canada for all of those exact same issues noted how far can Canada has come noted by the way that Al although Canada is not at 2% to be fair at the time that the commitments were made Canada was a lot further away from 2% than a lot of countries were and therefore applauding the progress that Canada is has made um I think it’s in Canada’s interest to have a plan to state that they’re going to get to 2% by some date certain Canada understands that um that it does need in the in the threat environment that exists in today’s world that it does need to invest more in defense and in particular in Continental defense which means defense in the Arctic I want to ask a question about that threat environment and in particular as it uh relates to the electoral process on this side of the border and uh and on your side on your home side I guess I should say of the border and I wanted to start off on on the question of foreign interference and ask you just in in general terms are you taking note of the debate that’s happened here the allegations that there could be so-called foreign agents in Parliament like is that of interest to the United States um it it look we it is certainly of interest to the United States um I think foreign interference is one of the most is one of the most scary threats to democracy that is floating around out there and with with AI with technology the way it is now with social media um the the capacity of foreign interference to disrupt Democratic elections Democratic processes to inter interfere in the social discourse that takes Pace in a democracy like Canada and like the United States is a very scary very scary scene to look at and we’re worried about it on the US side of the Border as well you referenced it in the in the introductory comments and um I think that the United States we’re taking as a aggressive a set of steps as we can to call out foreign interference to investigate our foreign interference um as you said the commitment that we’ve made to the American public is that if we find it foreign interference if we see foreign interference we will call it out publicly um and make sure that the that the public knows about it I think in an early appearance on this show I talked about my own bias I’m I I’m just Inc incredibly committed to the First Amendment um and to the um ability of people to speak the way they want to speak and what they want to say by the same token I note that disinformation is not protected speech it’s disinformation when I was a first year law student one of the first cases I read was a very famous case dealing with the rights to with the right of somebody to yell fire in a crowded theater that is not a First Amendment protected right because of the risk of harm that you cause to the people in the theater who race out of the theater because they’re afraid of fire it is equally not protected speech to call to call for genocide to to pop to knowingly populate false and misleading statements and so it’s okay with me even with my protection of the First Amendment for us to be very Vigilant in how we confront um disinformation and attempted foreign interference but I do believe that the most effective the safest the most protected way to combat disinformation and foreign interference is with truth and with more positive speech and to and to correct disinformation with information well that brings me to the final question I have for you which is where we might see that on the big stage this week in the debate I know that your position is not political one as you as you’ve also mentioned many times on this program so I have a very simple question in that context in your view is this debate and all of your questions are simple it’s the answers that are hard that’s very true that’s very true is is this debate an important moment in this campaign in your view well I again I I I just have to be so careful because both legally and for my own reputation here in Canada and elsewhere I think um I think it’s overridingly important that I not be perceived as being engaged in politics or or and and including in this upcoming election but I’m a I’m a big fan of debates for the reason that you just for the reason that I just talked about I think debates are an opportunity for the public to be able to see both candidates or all candidates talking to the American public um where each other is present and for the opport opportunity for candidates and moderators to correct disinformation or misinformation that is articulated by either candidate and so I think all debates are important parts of the democratic process they’re important parts of our free and fair election process so I do think that the first presidential debate is an important moment in the presidential campaign and it’s an important moment in demonstrating the way that our democracy works and it really works in the United States are you surprised it’s happening um I’m not surprised that it’s happening there hasn’t been a presidential election since the um Kennedy Nixon election where there hasn’t been presidential debates I might be a little surprised that it’s happening as early as it’s happening okay I will leave it on that note Ambassador Cohen great to see you have a wonderful summer thank you great to see you and have a wonderful summer as well I’ll see you on the fourth you bet US ambassador to Canada David Cohen

U.S. ambassador to Canada David Cohen outlines their position on Canada’s spending for defence.

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