A retired Canadian military officer is raising concerns about what he describes as Canada's declining standing among its geopolitical allies.
In an interview published on June 13 with the Frontier Centre for Public Policy, Lieutenant-Colonel (retired) David Redman criticized what he characterized as Canada's weakening alliances and defence readiness.
"We've seen our allies walking away from us," said Redman. "We're sending billions of dollars to Ukraine. Number one, should we?"
Redman said Canada's defence minister had stated that the Canadian Armed Forces were in a "death spiral."
"So why would any allies believe that Canada can bring anything to the table?"
He added that Canada is viewed as the "weakest link," with allies pulling back on intelligence-sharing and border co-operation.
The "death spiral" reference stems from comments made in 2024 by then-defence minister Bill Blair amid severe recruitment shortages in the Canadian Armed Forces.
Since 2022, Canada has spent more than $25.5 billion in assistance to Ukraine, including approximately $8.5 billion in military aid.
Canada met NATO's target of spending two per cent of gross domestic product on defence in 2025 and has pledged continued efforts to rebuild Canadian Armed Forces capacity.
The Frontier Centre for Public Policy is an independent Winnipeg-based think tank. Redman is a retired Canadian Army officer who served for 27 years.