Explanation
The distant early warning line (dew line) runs northwards in the Arctic from Alaska to the west to Baffin Island east, continuing across Greenland. It was built by the United States, with Canadian cooperation, at the height of the Cold War in the 1950s, as a defense against the Soviet Union.
Most of the self-sufficiency base on this line had runways paved and had the equipment and personnel needed to keep the runways cleaned up. Dozens of fighter bases prepared by the US strategic air command had to go up and running in case Soviet jets come to the Arctic.
Most of these sites have been unused, and the dew line has become the Northern Warning System. It hasn’t happened that much since then. The federal government has committed to dealing with the degradation of our defenses, but nothing of material has been done by Ottawa to deal more effectively with our vast Northern defenses. Similarly, the government has committed to modernizing the Nord (North American Aerospace Defense Command) commitment, but that has been largely ignored.
The Trump administration has made it clear that Canada feels unacceptable in preparation for defense. Complaints are legal.
In fact, the world is very different to what it looked like in the 1950s and 60s. At the time, the Soviet Union was a major threat to the West, but communist China was desperately poor and weak. Under Mao Zedong’s “Great Leap” and later his “Cultural Revolution”, millions of people starved. China looked more like North Korea than today’s economic and military giants. We certainly didn’t fear it as a threat.
Nowadays, communist China and increasingly aggressive Russia are horrifying enemies. They are also very interested in the North. Ominously, they have recently partnered with each other in “unlimited friendships” that increase the likelihood of working together (or currently working together) on joint programs for military and commercial exploitation in the North.
One reason is that sending large scale through the northwest passage is a possibility in the not too distant future. This passageway can significantly reduce transportation distances, saving you a lot of money and fuel. For both Russia and China, future passages from Asia to Europe via the northeastern passageways (also known as the North Sea Route) and the northwest passageways are invaluable strategically, militaryly and commercially.
Russia far outperforms Canada on strategy and development in the North. There are at least 40 ships capable of breaking ice, including eight nuclear-powered icebreakers. Canada does not have nuclear icebreakers. The recent promise to build two has been a few years since it was realized. Americans are keenly aware of the superiority of Russia’s northern part.
Northern Security is some way to explain Donald Trump’s highly publicity to buy Greenland. Whether he is serious about buying it or wants a better access guarantee is something only known to Trump and his closest advisors.
The prospect of Greenland falling under the control of its enemy (and potential enemies in the future) requires the Pentagon to be on guard. Are those prospects remote? Consider the fact that Greenlanders only have 56,000 people. China and Russia can, separately or jointly, make each Greenlander a $50 million billionaire. That’s a small amount for those giants. Have you ever wanted America to go to the Greenlanders with an offer? After all, Denmark assured the Greenlanders that they could become independent on a simple vote. The prospect of becoming a billionaire may have a strong appeal to the relatively poor indigenous populations of that huge cold island. Trump’s concerns about his country’s security are very real. He probably thinks it is absolutely important for China or Russia (as separate or combined forces) to gain control of Greenland.
Rather than funding the Greenlanders, Chinese Communist Party-controlled companies will be scaffolding in Greenland by making attractive offers to residents, as CCP did across developing countries with Belt and Road Initiative. You can earn it. The era of the European Empire was replaced by the fact that Europeans waving attractive trinkets on the faces of poor indigenous peoples, essentially doing the same thing with today’s well-versed Chinese businessmen.
But a glance at the map shows how close Greenland is to Canada. Trump probably has many concerns about the vast, largely vulnerable Canadian Arctic he has about Greenland. And some of Canada’s recent actions have probably sparked vigilance at Trump camps.
An example is Canada’s partial sovereign concessions to Nunavut. Nunavut is a huge land area. Like Greenland, it is rich in natural resources, especially natural gas. And like Greenland, that’s also strategically important.
Nunavut sits Smack Dab in a northwest passageway that may be worth trillions of dollars in the future. Who controls the aisles may turn out to be a determinant of whether the West, or China/Russia “no limit” will become the winner of the great power struggle of the future. Like Greenland, Nunavut has a small population and has around 38,000 predominantly Inuit people. In addition to targeting different levels of government, the Foreign Interference Commission has made it clear that foreign actors are also trying to abuse Indigenous communities.
We’ve seen how important the issues with CCP control in the Panama Canal are for Americans. The possibility of control of China/Russia’s northwest passage is equally important to them. It’s not to be wary, but the fact that China is already quietly engaged in large-scale transactions with semi-autonomous Indigenous territory should not have any relation to Canadians either Isn’t that the case?
Semi-autonomous Nunavut probably decides that their consent should use the passage, even from a Canadian ship? Now that the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (Undrip) has become Canadian law, can Indigenous peoples of these semi-autonomous Indigenous territories claim tribal laws that outweigh other laws? If you think this is too exaggeration, consider the fact that our Supreme Court has already determined that tribal law has already cancelled the protections of the charter. For Canadian resources. How does the US see such a giveaway of Canadian sovereignty into Indigenous groups?
Nunavut is not the only part of Canada that has been handed over or partially transferred to Indigenous groups. In British Columbia, Haidagwai (formerly the Queen of the Charlotte Islands) appears to be in a state similar to Nunavut.
The NDP government in BC appears to be determined to provide other parts of the state to many tribes living there as well. Each tribe will likely be able to enact their own laws and enter into commercial agreements with those of their choice. This includes CCP-controlled companies.
Although these contracts definitely have protection clauses, BC adopts the Declaration on Indigenous Rights (DRIPA). Doripa’s double whammy and undrip may hold in their arms a group of indigenous peoples with effective weapons to assert sovereignty even in the face of government opposition. Canadian courts want to give an indigenous group what they want. What is the possibility that Haida Guwai’s separatists are still planning business deals with CCP-controlled companies that should make Washington?
How will Trump, or a future administration, see these developments? Americans tolerate British Columbia or Canada. Will Canada give sovereignty to people who are encouraged to see themselves as victims of “colonialised” Canada, not British Colombians or Canadians? Or how does the US see Canada looking at human smuggling in semi-automatic Mohawk border reserves? Americans believe their safety is compromised.
Under pressure from the US, Canada is currently only committed to building more icebreakers and improving Northern defense.
Federal elections are in the future. The Prime Minister will be chosen. His or her new government will negotiate an agreement with the US that includes undoubtedly doing what we should have done for a long time: strengthening our North defense, our NATO commitment Realising, reconstructing an aging army. Our political leaders are also forced to undergo a major rethink on all issues related to North American security.
Trump, or the US president, did not even consider giving up sovereignty because Canada casually does so. When you think about security, this is probably a good time for Canada to work closely with Indigenous communities to strengthen its Arctic defense, with all regions remaining integrated within a unified security framework We guarantee that this is.
The views expressed in this article are the views of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the epoch era.
