The senior German and Norwegian defense officials say they are sure that Canada will sign the Roarm Europe Plan in the coming weeks and such a movement will provide the liberal government from buying new allies’ submarines.
Jasper Wieck, the political director of the German Ministry of Defense, and the director of Submarines of the Norwegian program, Captain (N) Oystein Storebo, spoke with CBC News recently about the Pango for Canada to join their existing association, in which the two nations are building avant -garde boats that will begin to enter the service in 2028.
The competition for the multi -million dollar defense program is heating and its comments occur weeks after two South Korean shipyards, in a joint business, submitted a detailed and not requested proposal It is worth up to $ 24 billion, to build 12 submarines for the Royal Canadian Navy.
Several shipyards in several countries responded last fall to a request for federal government information, but only the South Koreans took another step and delivered a detailed offer, claiming that they could deliver four ships to Canada by 2035, the deadline established by the Navy to receive their first new submarine.
At the NATO Summit last summer, former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau signed a letter of trilateral intention with Germany and Norway to establish a strategic association. The objective of this agreement is to strengthen maritime security cooperation in the North Atlantic in support of NATO deterrence and defense.
Wieck says that the agreement, plus the rearme program, is important for both Europe and Canada, since the West tries to face the threat of possible Russian aggression.
“It is an association that has so many benefits on both sides,” said Wieck. “Once Canada would have signed the Security and Defense Association with the European Union, Canada will be considered an EU Member State in all these European schemes and all these European incentives.”
Both Norway and the United Kingdom are not members of the EU, but they are deeply involved in the rearme plan.
“It’s about [the] Collective effort of Europeans, not only to buy collectively, but to maintain collectively and train collectively, “Wieck told CBC News in an interview.
Pitch to work with old allies
Storebo argued that there is something to say about associations with traditional long -standing NATO allies, an argument that has become a central thrust in the European Chamber against South Korea’s offer.
“I think we are offering a real association, perhaps the industry industry, the government to the government, to join a family that is familiar,” Storebo said.
Beyond responding to the request for information from Canada, which is essentially an expression of interest, the German shipyard who leads the offer, Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS), said he has not presented more information and is waiting for the formal process of the Canadian government to be launched.
Germany and Norway have been involved for several years in the joint underwater construction program. Designated as the 212CD, the ships are based on the German design 212A Germanly established, which is operated by the German and Italian armed.
While OTTAWA rethinks US weapons contracts, Southern Korea weapons manufacturers want to replenish the exhausted army of Canada with everything, from obuses to submarines. Murray Brewster de CBC obtained exclusive access to a company from a company to become the new high -tech Arsenal in Canada.
The 212CD was designed for operations in all oceans, but is more than capable of its independent air propulsion of remaining submerged in the Arctic for up to three weeks, Storebo said.
Six 212CDS, two for Germany and four for Norway, as part of a $ 8.1 billion program (5.5 billion euros) are currently being built.
The German Navy will receive its first 212CD in 2028, while Norway is expected to be in the water the following year.
Oliver Burkhard, the TKMS CEO, said that if Canada joins the current program, it is possible that the first Canadian ship reaches its requested deadline. Although, he said, it depends a lot on the Canadian government and how quickly it moves.
At this point, leaning in the production line, would probably imply redesign one of the submarines already destined for Germany or Norway, Burkhard said.
“I think there are opportunities to discuss whether one of them is perhaps the first Canadian,” he said.
The launch of TKMS also implies a plan to build a underwater maintenance installation in Canada, creating jobs for Canadians, an important condition that the liberal government has repeatedly underlined.
When it was proposed last year, the intention of the Trilateral Association of Canada, Germany and Norway was to attack a broad security pact similar to, but one step down from-Aukus, the defense agreement that involved the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.
In Aukus’s heart it was an agreement for Australia to acquire submarines and nuclear technology, something that Canada is not interested, although there was political dismay in Ottawa about being out of the agreement.
