MNI BRIEF: Canada To Meet NATO Spend Goal This Yr, Cut US Gear

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney pledged to boost military spending to the NATO goal of 2% of GDP this year, a target past governments resisted for decades because the cost adds pressure on the deficit, while saying fewer of those dollars will go to United States contractors.

The boost is needed as America's attitude to global security changes while nations like Russia and China pose a risk in opening Arctic waters, Carney said in Toronto Monday. “The long held view that Canada’s geographic location will protect us is becoming increasingly archaic,” he said. “We should no longer send three-quarters of our capital defense spending to America.” (See: MNI: Canada Studied Vulnerability To Fiscal Risk Premium)