Canada reconsiders F-35 purchase, explores alternative fighter jets
OTTAWA — Canada is reassessing its purchase of US-made F-35 stealth fighters and has begun talks with competing aircraft manufacturers, Defense Minister Bill Blair announced late Friday, just hours after being reappointed in Prime Minister Mark Carney's newly established Cabinet.
His remarks came after Portugal signaled plans to abandon its purchase of the advanced warplane.
The review is taking place amid escalating tensions between Canada and the Trump administration over tariffs and economic pressure, with US President Donald Trump threatening to annex Canada through trade measures.
After years of delays, the Liberal government finalized a contract with US defense giant Lockheed Martin in June 2023 to acquire 88 F-35 jets.
"It was the fighter jet identified by our air force as the platform that they required, but we are also examining other alternatives — whether we need all of those fighter jets to be F-35s," Blair told CBC's Power & Politics.
Canada has already made an initial payment for the first 16 warplanes, set to be delivered early next year.
Blair said while the first batch of F-35s might still be accepted, the remainder of the fleet could be sourced from European manufacturers, including Sweden's Saab Gripen, which was the runner-up in the procurement process.
"The prime minister has asked me to go and examine those things and have discussions with other sources, particularly where there may be opportunities to assemble those fighter jets in Canada," Blair said.
Lockheed Martin responded to the news, emphasizing its long-standing partnership with the Royal Canadian Air Force.
"Lockheed Martin values our strong partnership and history with the Royal Canadian Air Force and looks forward to continuing that partnership into the future," Rebecca Miller, the company's director of global media relations, said in a statement.
"Foreign military sales are government-to-government transactions, so anything further will be best addressed by the US or respective customer governments," she added. — Agencies
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
14 hours ago
- Arab News
US believes Russia response to Ukraine drone attack not over yet, expects multi-pronged strike
WASHINGTON: The United States believes that Russian President Vladimir Putin's threatened retaliation against Ukraine over its drone attack last weekend has not happened yet in earnest and is likely to be a significant, multi-pronged strike, US officials told Reuters. The timing of the full Russian response was unclear, with one source saying it was expected within days. A second US official said the retaliation was likely to include different kinds of air capabilities, including missiles and drones. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity. They did not detail Russia's expected targets nor elaborate on intelligence matters. The first official said Moscow's attack would be 'asymmetrical,' meaning that its approach and targeting would not mirror Ukraine's strike last weekend against Russian warplanes. • Putin's retaliation for Ukraine drone strike has yet to fully unfold, US officials say • Strikes expected to including missiles, drones, US officials say • Moscow's retaliation expected to be 'asymmetrical,' official says Russia launched an intense missile and drone barrage at the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on Friday and Russia's Defense Ministry said the strike on military and military-related targets was in response to what it called Ukrainian 'terrorist acts' against Russia. But the US officials believe the complete Russian response is yet to come. A Western diplomatic source said that while Russia's response may have started, it would likely intensify with strikes against symbolic Ukrainian targets like government buildings, in an effort to send a clear message to Kyiv. Another, senior, Western diplomat anticipated a further devastating assault by Moscow. 'It will be huge, vicious and unrelenting,' the diplomat said. 'But the Ukrainians are brave people.' The Russian and Ukrainian embassies in Washington and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Michael Kofman, a Russia expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said he expected Moscow might seek to punish Ukraine's domestic security agency, the SBU, for its role in last weekend's assault. To send a message, Russia could employ intermediate-range ballistic missiles for the attack, he said. 'Most likely, they will attempt to retaliate against (SBU) headquarters, or other regional intelligence administration buildings,' Kofman said, adding Russia could also target Ukrainian defense manufacturing centers. Still, Kofman suggested Russia's options for retaliation may be limited as it is already throwing a lot of its military might at Ukraine. 'In general, Russia's ability to substantially escalate strikes from what they are already doing — and attempting to do over the past month — is quite constrained,' he said. OPERATION 'SPIDER'S WEB' Kyiv says Sunday's audacious attack employed 117 unmanned aerial vehicles launched deep from within Russian territory in an operation code-named 'Spider's Web.' The United States assesses that up to 20 warplanes were hit — around half the number estimated by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky — and around 10 were destroyed. The Russian government on Thursday denied that any planes were destroyed and said the damage would be repaired, but Russian military bloggers have spoken of loss or serious damage to about a dozen planes, including those capable of carrying nuclear weapons. The strikes, prepared over 18 months and conducted by drones smuggled close to the bases in trucks, dealt a powerful symbolic blow to Russia, which throughout the Ukraine war has frequently reminded the world of its nuclear might. Putin told President Donald Trump in a telephone conversation on Wednesday that Moscow would have to respond to attack, Trump said in a social media post. Trump later told reporters that 'it's probably not going to be pretty.' 'I don't like it. I said: 'Don't do it. You shouldn't do it. You should stop it,'' Trump said of his conversation with Putin. 'But, again, there's a lot of hatred.'
Arab News
14 hours ago
- Arab News
US-backed Gaza group suspends aid for a day over threats, Hamas vows to protect UN aid
JERUSALEM/CAIRO: A controversial humanitarian organization backed by the United States and Israel did not distribute any food aid on Saturday, accusing Hamas of making threats that "made it impossible" to operate in the enclave, which the Palestinian militants denied. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which uses private U.S. security and logistics firms to operate, said it was adapting operations to overcome the unspecified threats. It later said in a Facebook post that two sites would reopen on Sunday. A Hamas official told Reuters he had no knowledge of such "alleged threats." The Hamas-run Gaza government media office said later on Saturday that GHF operation has "utterly failed on all levels" and that Hamas was ready to help secure aid deliveries by a separate long-running U.N-led humanitarian operation. Hamas also called on all Palestinians to protect humanitarian convoys. • Hamas source says to deploy snipers to protect U.N. aid convoys • US-backed aid group says to resume distribution on Sunday • Nattapong Pinta among 251 abducted by Hamas in October 2023 • 55 Palestinians killed in latest Israeli airstrikes -Gaza medics Israel and the United States have accused Hamas of stealing aid from the U.N.-led operations, which the militants deny. A Hamas source said the group's armed wing would deploy some snipers from Sunday near routes used by the U.N.-led aid operation to prevent armed gangs looting food shipments. The U.N. did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Israel allowed limited U.N.-led operations to resume on May 19 after an 11-week blockade in the enclave of 2.3 million people, where experts have warned a famine looms. The U.N. has described the aid allowed into Gaza as "drop in the ocean." Israel and the U.S. are urging the U.N. to work through the GHF, but the U.N. has refused, questioning its neutrality and accusing the distribution model of militarizing aid and forcing displacement. The GHF began operations in Gaza on May 26 and said on Friday so far it has distributed nearly 9 million meals. While the GHF has said there have been no incidents at its so-called secure distribution sites, Palestinians seeking aid have described disorder and access routes to the sites have been beset by chaos and deadly violence. Dozens of Palestinians were killed near GHF sites between Sunday and Tuesday, Gaza health authorities said. Israel has said it is investigating the Monday and Tuesday incidents, but said it was not to blame for Sunday's violence. HOSPITAL FUEL LOW The GHF did not give out aid on Wednesday as it pressed Israel to boost civilian safety beyond its sites, then on Friday it paused some aid distribution "due to excessive crowding." The Israeli military said on Saturday that 350 trucks of humanitarian aid belonging to the U.N. and other international relief groups were transferred this week via the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza. Israel makes the U.N. offload aid on the Palestinian side of the crossing, where it then has to be picked by the U.N. and aid groups in Gaza. The U.N. has accused Israel of regularly denying access requests and complained that its aid convoys have been looted by unidentified armed men and hungry civilians. Israel has in recent weeks expanded its offensive across the Gaza Strip as U.S., Qatari and Egyptian-led efforts to secure another ceasefire have faltered. Medics in Gaza said 55 people were killed in Israeli strikes across the enclave on Saturday. The Palestinian Health Ministry said on Saturday that Gaza's hospitals only had fuel for three more days and that Israel was denying access for international relief agencies to areas where fuel storages designated for hospitals are located. There was no immediate response from the Israeli military or COGAT, the Israeli defence agency that coordinates humanitarian matters with the Palestinians. Meanwhile, the Israeli military said it had uncovered "an underground tunnel route, including a command and control center from which senior Hamas commanders" operated beneath the European Hospital compound in southern Gaza. The war erupted after Hamas-led militants took 251 hostages and killed 1,200 people, most of them civilians, in the Oct. 7, 2023, attack, Israel's single deadliest day. Israel's military campaign has since killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to health authorities in Gaza, and flattened much of the coastal enclave. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Saturday the Israeli military had retrieved the body of a Thai agricultural worker held in Gaza since the October 2023 attack. Nattapong Pinta's body was held by the Mujahedeen Brigades militant group, and recovered from Rafah in southern Gaza, Katz said.
Al Arabiya
a day ago
- Al Arabiya
US-backed aid group says it did not operate on Saturday due to Hamas threats
The US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation said it was unable to distribute any humanitarian aid on Saturday because Palestinian militants Hamas had issued 'direct threats' against the organization's operations. 'These threats made it impossible to proceed today without putting innocent lives at risk,' the organization said in a statement. 'GHF will not be deterred. We remain committed to safe, secure and independent aid delivery. We are actively adapting our operations to overcome these threats and fully intend to resume distributions without delay.'
