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Canadian Naval Review

Free-Riding Chickens Coming Home to Roost?

By Dan Middlemiss, 18 January 2025

A portrait of then-President-Elect Donald Trump in 2016. Credit: Library of Congress.

Here is an article that is certain to generate much vitriol on all sides.

In a (subscriber-only) column for The Globe and Mail, journalist Konrad Yakabuski argues that President-elect Trump’s threatened tariffs are a direct consequence of the United States’ recognition that it has been propping up the free world’s open trading system at the expense of its own national security interests. During his first term in office, President Trump made it very clear that he thought Canada had been free-riding off of US defence protection while Canadian manufacturers and resource companies enjoyed free access to the lucrative US market. Trump saw this as fundamentally unfair.

Yakabuski argues further that Trump’s tariff threats are supported by recent research that challenges the longstanding consensus about the benefits of free and open trade for the United States. A study by Stephen Miran (see link below) indicates that the United States has buttressed the international trading system at considerable costs to its own economy and national security.

Yakabuski further notes that, “Because of its status as the world’s reserve currency, the U.S. dollar has been overvalued, undermining the competitiveness of American manufacturers. To make matters worse, some of the very countries benefitting from an overvalued U.S. currency to flood the U.S. market with their products also shirk their NATO obligations. And Canada leads the pack.”

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Preview: Canadian Naval Review Vol. 20 No. 3

As the winter settles in and the holiday season is over, it’s good to have something to look forward to (other than spring, which is still far away)! We can provide that for you. The winter issue of CNR is coming soon! I know we say this every time, but this issue is superb. Prepare to be delighted!

In the upcoming issue, the Editorial by Rob Huebert discusses some little-discussed elements of future conflict for which we need to be prepared – eg., repairing ships that have been damaged in battle and the processes for repatriating the fallen. As well, you’ll find an extremely interesting interview conducted with Commodore Jason Armstrong, Director General Naval Force Development (NFD).

We find out what’s up with NFD and what’s not up. In an article entitled “Closing the RCN’s Mine Countermeasure Capability Gap,” we learn how, as a compromise build, the Maritime Coastal Defence Vessels have never lived up to their full potential in terms of mine countermeasures and about possibilities to strengthen the capability in the future.

In another article, we take a voyage with Roger Litwiller on HMCS Harry DeWolf as the ship makes a historic first voyage through the Welland Canal. We also include a piece entitled “The Death of Public Awareness” that draws a line connecting the decision to cancel the Strategic Defence Forum with the lack of Canadian public awareness about the navy (and the CAF in general). And in his column, Dave Perry tells us that, at last, defence spending is increasing.  

We can’t possibly mention everything in this preview. Let’s just say that there are some very interesting pieces in Making Waves. As a sample, there is a commentary about how Canada/the RCN could be helping African countries address oil bunkering at sea, another commentary that discusses some of the challenges the Arctic Council is facing since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and a commentary that suggests Canada should leave NATO and focus on the defence of North America.  

Of course there are book reviews and stunning photos to illustrate everything! You will not be able to put this issue down once you start reading! See the Table of Contents below. Table of Contents here.

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Looking for Books about Maritime Matters?

Over the last 15 years, Canadian Naval Review has published over 180 book reviews. These books cover a variety of topics but they all relate to maritime matters, history, or security and defence at sea. This is an amazing resource. Go through the list of reviews, pick out a few books that look interesting, read the reviews, and then order the books from your nearest bookstore or from the publisher. See the list of book reviews at https://www.navalreview.ca/book-reviews/