Canada’s Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre mocked leftist Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for being treated like a “human piñata” during this week’s NATO summit in Washington after widespread reports suggested Canada faced intense pressure to meet its defense spending commitments.
Under Trudeau, Canada pledged to increase its defense spending to two percent of its national gross domestic product (GDP) in 2014, a move made in the aftermath of Russian strongman Vladimir Putin’s invasion and annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula.
“The 2% of GDP guideline is an important indicator of the political resolve of individual Allies to contribute to NATO’s common defence efforts,” NATO explains on its website, noting that, spending by the “European Allies and Canada” has increased ” from 1.43% of their combined GDP in 2014, to 2.02% in 2024, when they are investing a combined total of more than USD 430 billion in defence.”
Canada is among the nations most dragging that average down, however. Ottawa spends only about 1.37 percent of its budget on defense. A Canadian Armed Forces report published in March warned that as much as half of the country’s military equipment is “unavailable and unserviceable,” requiring significant investments in modernization to keep Canada’s capabilities modern.
Trudeau has been facing increasing pressure from NATO allies, particularly the United States, to ensure that his military is properly funded. In May – a month after Trudeau signed off on increasing defense spending to just 1.7 percent by the end of the decade, 23 senators from both parties sent him a letter pressuring him to swiftly increase defense spending. Visiting America this week for the NATO summit, the prime minister repeatedly faced questions about Canada’s poor contributions to the military alliance.
“What’s happening now that everyone is spending more, the fact that the Canadians aren’t even trying has become obvious,” Max Bergmann, a former State Department arms control official, told Politico last week.
In the same report on dissatisfaction with Canada, an anonymous alleged U.S. government staffer described the European NATO members as “frustrated that they’re being criticized and Canada is not feeling the same pressure from Washington.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) bluntly criticized Trudeau’s government in remarks on Monday, accusing Canada of “riding on America’s coattails” by neglecting its own defense.
“Shamefully, Canada announced in the last few days or the last couple of days that they won’t be ponying up. They’re not going to do their 2 percent,” Rep. Johnson said. “Why? Talk about riding on America’s coattails. They have the safety and security of being on our border and not having to worry about that. I think that’s shameful.”
Trudeau attempted to respond to these concerns in remarks on Thursday announcing a concrete goal date for when Canada would hit the two-percent threshold it committed to a decade ago – a goal nearly another decade into the future.
“We can say with confidence and assurance that we will hit the 2-percent spending mark by 2032,” Trudeau declared with an air of triumph. Trudeau did not offer any specifics on what Canada will be spending that money on, where it will be investing in modernizing its armed forces. He also did not explain why it would take eight more years to reach a 2014 goal.
Trudeau promised Canada was “buying big things, building big things,” but did not elaborate, and accused critics of limiting Canada by judging its value to NATO on a “crass mathematical calculation.”
“We continually step up and punch above our weight, something that isn’t always reflected in the crass mathematical calculation that certain people turn to very quickly,” Trudeau said.
Elsewhere during the summit, Trudeau pledged another $500 million in military aid to Ukraine, which follows $4 billion Trudeau has committed to the country.
Asked to remark on Trudeau’s performance at the NATO summit, Poilievre – who would presumably become prime minister of a Conservative government – told reporters on Friday that he was “embarrassed.”
“It’s clear now Justin Trudeau is seen as an absolute joke on the world stage,” Poilievre responded. “I was embarrassed to see our prime minister treated like a human piñata by the rest of the NATO countries.”
“They look upon him with total and complete ridicule. Canadians are tired of being embarrassed by a prime minister who prances around and preens, who lectures the world without doing his part,” he concluded.
Poilievre was asked if he would commit to increase defense spending to two percent of GDP in a conservative government, but declined to do so because “our country is broke” and he needed more specific knowledge of the national budget.
“Every time I make a financial commitment, I’m going to make sure I’ve pulled out my calculator and done all the math, because people are sick and tired of politicians just announcing that they’re going to spend money without figuring out how they’re going to pay for it,” he said.
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