Following a blizzard of criticism from allies — most notably the United States — the Liberal government announced Thursday that it hopes to meet NATO's military investment benchmark of two per cent of alliance members' gross domestic products by 2032.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made the statement at the close of the alliance's annual summit in Washington.
While the prime minister didn't say precisely how the Liberal government intends to reach the goal, both his defence and foreign affairs ministers have for weeks hinted that uncosted, unapproved elements of the new defence policy will push the country up to and possibly past the two per cent mark.
The government has committed to a regular cycle of defence reviews. The next one is set for 2028.
"We will continue to explore opportunities that will further increase defence spending and advance Canada's strategic interests," Trudeau said.
Defence Minister Bill Blair has said repeatedly over the past few months that he's been hoping to share a verifiable plan with NATO allies — who have been increasingly vocal about their disappointment in Canada's failure to accelerate its investments in defence.
The announcement of a timeline without details is unlikely to quell allies' criticism — especially now that some of them, including Poland, are calling for the benchmark to be moved even higher.
