U.S. pauses – The U.S. undersecretary of defence says Washington is pausing the Permanent Joint Board on Defense, citing Canada’s lack of “credible progress” on defence commitments, drawing sharp criticism from former Conservative leader Erin O’Toole.
The U.S. undersecretary of defence says Washington is pausing a long-standing military board with Canada, a move that immediately reignited public pressure over whether Canada is meeting its defence commitments.
Elbridge Colby said in a post on social media that his department is pausing the Permanent Joint Board on Defense “to reassess how this forum benefits shared North American defense.” Colby’s message tied the decision to his view that “Canada has failed to make credible progress on its defense commitments.”
The Permanent Joint Board on Defense was established in 1940 and serves as an advisory forum for U.S.-Canada bilateral defence co-operation.. Colby’s decision. framed as a reassessment of the forum’s value. lands at a time when Canada’s defence spending has been rising under Prime Minister Mark Carney.
Former Conservative leader Erin O’Toole called the move “profoundly misguided.” In her post. O’Toole said “Canada has been and will be an ally that shares values of liberty.” She also pointed to Carney’s reported shift on spending. noting that Prime Minister Mark Carney has significantly increased Canada’s defence spending and surpassed North Atlantic Treaty Organization targets.
The sequence is stark: Colby says the board is being paused “to reassess how this forum benefits shared North American defense. ” while his stated justification is that “Canada has failed to make credible progress on its defense commitments. ” even as O’Toole highlights Carney’s defence spending increases and Canada’s NATO target gains.
Carney’s government. which has pushed defence spending higher. now faces a fresh test in how it responds to the U.S.. decision—especially because the board itself has existed since 1940 as a shared mechanism for defence co-operation.. The latest dispute leaves Canada’s progress under scrutiny from Washington. and it has already prompted blunt pushback from O’Toole.
Canada United States defence commitments Permanent Joint Board on Defense Elbridge Colby Mark Carney Erin O’Toole NATO targets bilateral defence cooperation