Defence and security make up first pillar of Canada’s foreign policy, Anand tells UN

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Defence and security make up the first pillar of Canada’s foreign policy, the country’s top diplomat told the United Nations on Monday.

Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand laid out Canada’s international priorities in a speech to the UN General Assembly, painting the country as a reliable partner in tough times.

She said the rules-based international order is under threat, “with powers shifting in ways that jeopardize our security and prosperity” – challenges she said “no country can address alone.”

Her words are the most recent glimpse into Canada’s foreign policy priorities under Prime Minister Mark Carney, who took office in March. In the spring, Mr. Carney pledged to boost annual defence spending by tens of billions of dollars in what would be the biggest increase in military expenditures in more than 70 years.

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The minister told the UN General Assembly that at its core, Canada’s foreign policy rests on three pillars: “First, defence and security: keeping Canadians safe, strengthening our sovereignty, being good allies and partners in NATO and NORAD,” she said, referring to the country’s only two military alliances: the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the North American Aerospace Defense Command.

The second pillar is economic resilience, Ms. Anand said in remarks that appeared to be as much a sales pitch for doing business with Canada as a UN speech. This means Canada’s priority is “diversifying trade, strengthening supply chains, being an attractive destination for capital and entrusted trading partner and advancing rules-based trade,” she added.

The third pillar of Canada’s foreign policy is promoting “core values,” including democracy and pluralism, or diversity, as well as gender equality, environmental protections and working with Indigenous people in Canada on sustainable development and prosperity.

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Fen Hampson, a senior Carleton University professor of international affairs, said the way the foreign policy priorities laid out by Ms. Anand are ranked represents a significant shift from how things were under Justin Trudeau. “It’s a 180-degree turn,” Prof. Hampson said.

It’s only in the third pillar, he said, where one recognizes familiar Liberal Party policies dating back to Lester Pearson, as well as priorities established by Mr. Trudeau.

Ms. Anand’s remarks appear to suggest a more muscular Canada, at least in terms of its defence and security commitments.

“Canada will be defined not by the strength of our values but the value of our strength,” she said near the end of her address.

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Ms. Anand also talked of how some countries “are turning more inward, looking at protectionism and unilateralism, rather than multilateralism.”

She did not identify the United States or American President Donald Trump as the vanguard of this rising protectionism, despite the fact that since January the U.S. has upended the international trading system with a slew of tariffs on its allies and trading partners.

Canada will not join this trend, Ms. Anand said. “Retreat is not an option. Canada will not turn inward.”

At home, Canada intends to secure its northern territory as an Arctic nation, the minister said; abroad, it will use its resources to help alleviate suffering and to advance core values.

“Canada will safeguard its sovereignty, modernize NORAD with the United States, bolster NATO with fellow members and work with Indigenous peoples to ensure that the Arctic remains a region of peace, co-operation and sustainable development.”

The foreign minister said Canada’s support for Ukraine, under attack by Russia, remains steady.

“By supporting Ukraine, we are not just defending a nation. We are defending the fundamental principles of sovereignty, dignity and peace that unite us all.”

Canada has already committed $22-billion in multifaceted assistance to Ukraine, and Kyiv “can count on our long-term support,” Ms. Anand said, adding that “Putin cannot be permitted to redraw boundaries at his will.”

Canada is trying to rapidly diversify its trade with countries beyond the United States. The Trump administration’s protectionist policies have damaged Canada-U.S. trade and are discouraging business investment in this country.

Ms. Anand noted that in the last six months Canada has signed a new strategic defence partnership with the European Union, a new trade deal with Indonesia and is expanding collaboration with Mexico.

“We are determined to forge new economic partnerships and leverage our competitive advantages in areas of economic strength.”

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Roland Paris, a professor of international affairs and the director of the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Ottawa, said the rank ordering of sovereignty and security, economic prosperity and values is a recurring theme in Canadian foreign policy statements since the late 1940s.

“It will come down to how Canada pursues these goals,” Mr. Paris said. So far, he added, the government has made long-delayed commitments to defence spending, and Mr. Carney has been working hard to expand and diversify Canadian trade.

Canada joined other Western countries to recognize the state of Palestine last week and Ms. Anand on Monday urged Israel to spare hospitals in its offensive on Gaza.

“We call on Israel to help protect the civilian population in Gaza, to open land corridors for unimpeded access of humanitarian aid at scale, and to ensure that health care facilities are fully protected.”

She said Canada recognized Palestine to help keep alive a two-state-solution for peace in the region – a solution she said is eroding because of Israel’s “illegal expansion” of West Bank settlements.