Canada must spend more on military: Martin

Canada must spend more on military: Martin
Last Updated Thu, 01 May 2003 9:42:01

TORONTO - Liberal leadership front-runner Paul Martin says Canada must spend more on its military and develop a "more sophisticated" relationship with the U.S.

Martin outlined his foreign policy plans Wednesday night at a Canadian Press dinner, but insisted he wasn't criticizing the current prime minister's handling of relations with our southern neighbour.

He said the relationship starts with how the prime minister and U.S. president interact, but also goes down to personal relationships between Canadian MPs and U.S. representatives.

"We've got to be much more sophisticated in terms the way the entire parliamentary process in this country interacts with their counterparts in the United States," said Martin.

Improving that relationship includes boosting spending on the military and security, Martin said.

He said Canada's weak military is hurting the country's reputation in the international community.

"The gap between the expectations for our military and our capacity to deliver it is simply too great," said Martin.

Martin said Canada should act when situations arise in the world that offend Canadian values, even if there is not consensus at the United Nations.

He said multilateral organizations such as the UN need fixing and Canada shouldn't let a lack of consensus stop its efforts to fight injustices.

Martin said as prime minister he would join Washington's controversial missile defence program, which some say would turn North America into a fortress, with missiles in place in Alaska and at sea.

"If there is going to be an American missile going off somewhere over Canadian airspace, I think Canada should be at the table making the decisions," he said.

Written by CBC News Online staff