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OTTAWA — Opposition Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is promising to build a new military base in Canada’s Arctic to bolster its security against threats from China and Russia.
Poilievre unveiled the announcement during a press conference on Monday in Iqaluit and in a slickly produced video released earlier in the day.
It comes as Poilievre, who for the past two years has been prosecuting the Liberal government’s record on the cost of living, is shifting his focus to Canadian security at a time when Canadians are also becoming increasingly concerned about statements made by U.S. President Donald Trump.
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Trump has repeatedly said he wants Canada to become a “51st state” and on Sunday promised to impose 25 per cent tariffs on all steel and aluminum entering the U.S., including from Canada.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is currently in Paris attending an event on artificial intelligence, but has said that should the U.S. make good on its threat of imposing tariffs, as Trump has threatened to do on all Canadian imports, the federal government would retaliate.
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Poilievre has been among several political leaders calling on the Liberals to reinforce its border security.
During his announcement Monday, the Conservative leader promised that should Canadians elect him as their next prime minister, he would not only build a new permeant Arctic base within two years called CFB Iqaluit, but also double the size of the Canadian Rangers and acquire to more polar icebreakers.
National Post
staylor@postmedia.com
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