Canada’s top general tries to reassure Ukraine as NATO tensions flare

Canada’s top out armed forces commander attempted to redeem a substance of reassurance to Ukrainians on th that NATO remains a stable, vital force despite turmoil and criticism — most of it from the Trump administration.

“It was very important that we clarify that NATO unity is absolutely strong,” Carignan said.

“NATO has been going through some bumpy times before and we're going to work through this diligently," she said. "We are going to navigate through all of this, but I have to say on the military front, we are working and collaborating very well together.”

Over the last month, U.S. President Donald Trump has escalated his criticism of NATO, mostly over the alliance's refusal to support the U.S. And Israel in their war with Iran. He has branded NATO a "paper tiger" and "useless" and expressed frustration that key allies like Spain, Italy, and France restricted access to their airspace and bases for offensive operations.

The western military alliance was driven to the point of rupture in January by Trump’s threats to annex Greenland in the name of security and resource development.

He’s even suggested he’s prepared to withdraw the United States from the alliance it helped create almost eight decades ago.

The Wall Street Journal has reported that European NATO allies are actively developing a "Plan B" or "European NATO" to maintain the alliance's operational capacity in the event of a significant U.S. Withdrawal — or reduced commitment.

While a 2023 law requires the Trump administration to seek Congressional approval for an official exit, it’s been suggested by senior American officials that Washington may attempt to bypass that provision by starving the alliance of funding — or unilaterally reducing U.S. Military participation, such as withdrawing officers from key leadership positions.

Carignan said she's skeptical that the U.S. Is heading to the exit.

“I don't see it from my perspective,” she said, noting that the alliance is “always managing everybody's contribution and realigning our plans and responding to various crisis situations.”

The question of NATO solidarity is crucial for Ukraine. The Eastern European country’s desire to join the alliance has been used by Russian President Vladimir Putin as a pretext for his ongoing war against his neighbour. 

While NATO publicly maintains that Ukraine's path to membership is "irreversible," Secretary General Mark Rutte said, on April 9, that there is currently no political consensus among member states to extend an invitation.

NATO chief asked if membership for Ukraine is a bargaining chip in talks

He explicitly named the United States, Germany, Slovakia and Hungary as the primary countries "holding back" on Ukraine's rapid progress toward the alliance.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has, however, reportedly signalled a willingness to consider Western security guarantees as an alternative to immediate NATO membership.

Earlier Thursday, Britain’s Prince Harry, the youngest son of King Charles, delivered an address to the same security forum where Canada's Carignan spoke.

He praised how Ukraine is "bravely and successfully defending Europe's eastern flank" and suggested the country represents an important moral obligation to the United States, since it convinced the government in Kyiv to give up nuclear weapons in the 1990s following the collapse of the Soviet Union.

"America was part of the assurance that Ukraine's sovereignty and borders would be respected," Prince Harry said.

"This is a moment for American leadership, a moment for America to show that it can honour its international treaty obligations, not out of charity but out of its own enduring role in global security and strategic stability."

Canada has, since 2015, been helping train the Ukrainian military and security forces. The Carney government recently extended Operation Unifier until 2029.

Since the inception, the Canadian military has trained over 47,000 members of the Security Forces of Ukraine (SFU) — approximately 13,000 of whom have been trained in various locations across Europe following Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.

The training has mostly covered a range of basic and advanced military skills, including tactical medical training, combat engineering and leadership skills and education.

Since many Ukrainian troops have more combat experience than their allied instructors, the country has begun taking over much of the training.

The first steps of Russia's military operation in Ukraine

High-ranking Ukrainian military officials, including Deputy Chief of the General Staff Col. Yevhen Mezhevikin, have been quoted as saying foreign instructors often lack modern, high-intensity combat experience against a major adversary like Russia.

Training centres are being expanded in the safer western regions of Ukraine, and some instruction is also now being conducted directly within combat brigades in the field to maintain security and realism. It’s been especially important when it comes to passing on skills, such as drone warfare techniques, electronic warfare and unmanned ground vehicles.

Carignan acknowledged the change and said it has meant the Canadian military has had to adjust its lesson plans.

“What we have done recently is focus our efforts toward training trainers,” Carignan said. 

“The armed forces of Ukraine members come back from the front with very, very good and up-to-date experience from the front. So we match that with instructor techniques and how to build training sessions and plan, and then the Ukrainians deliver their own training.”

Senior reporter, defence and security

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