November 29, 2002

The Canadian government is defending it's spending on the armed forces. Canada currently spends about $12 billion a year. This puts it 14th in the world in defense spending, and sixth in NATO. But critics say that Canada is not spending enough to do what the country wants done by it's armed forces. Canada is a wealthy nation, but is 153rd out of 192 nations in the percentage of GDP that it spends on the military. By that standard, the U.S. is 53rd. But America spends more than any other nation on the planet. Canadian troops constantly complain of worn out equipment and shortages in many areas. Since 1993, Canada has cut defense spending 23 percent and manpower 25 percent. What it comes down to is not spending a lot, but spending enough.