A Farce

I just want to make a quick comment about the government’s latest 4.5 billion dollar commission of 8 new frigates mandated to defend the Northwest Passage. I don’t want to sound like a permanent cynic, but this purchase really is a farce. It’s an important addition to our navy, but it doesn’t even come near to what is required to defend our arctic.

The government had initially gotten it right by promising to construct three new armed heavy ice-breaking ships and an underground network of listening posts. They would have made it possible for our military to constantly monitor the passage for foreign vessels such as US submarines, and make a swift deployment of the scene. Instead, they abandoned the plan for underground listening posts and replaced the proper armed ice-breakers with a few frigates that can only break through one meter of ice and will therefore only be able to cross through the passage during the summer months.

This is a farce.