Laurent de Casanove, a spokesperson for the Canadian Ministry of Defence, reported that Prime Minister Carney had asked the Chief of Ministry Bill Blair to revise the contract for the acquisition of the F-35 and look for possible alternatives.
– We must do our homework, given the changing environment, and make certain that the agreement in its present form is in the best interests of Canadians and Canadian armed forces," indicated a typical of the defence department, as quoted by CTV News.
On Friday, Bill Blair mentioned the case in an interview given to the CBC. He pointed out that he wanted to research whether there was an alternate to investing in American equipment, especially in the issues of aircraft assembly, support and maintenance in Canada. He informed that the Prime Minister had asked him to "take all our options to make certain that we made the right decision for Canada."
The head of the Ministry of Defence informed that he would consult representatives of the Canadian Air Force, but besides allied and partner countries.
Earlier, the co-director of the Space Institute and prof. of the University of British Columbia, Michael Byers, had advocated the cancellation of the agreement. He argued that since the F-35 fighters were highly computerised and the Lockheed Martin maker refused to release the origin code, Canada will not have full control of the machines.
– We request aircraft that can be full efficient, without computer systems controlled by the United States," said the professor.
Lockheed Martin issued a message saying that the company appreciates a strong partnership with the Royal Canadian Air Force and “is looking forward to its continuation in the future”. The company besides addressed inquiries to both the Canadian and US governments.
On Friday, the Portuguese government withdrew from buying F-35 fighters. Lisbon's doubts stemmed from the unpredictability of Donald Trump's presidency. The head of the Portuguese MON Nuno Melo reported in an interview with Radio Renascenca and the paper "Publico", that the planned exchange of outdated F-16 fighters for modern American F-35 would not take place due to the fact that in the current geopolitical situation it is not "the best option".
– The U.S.'s fresh position in the context of NATO and in the global arena on a geostrategic level forces us to consider the best options," the minister stressed.
The minister admitted that he was inclined to cooperate with Europe. We must believe that under all circumstances the allies will be on our side. respective options should be considered, especially in the context of European production," he said.
Canada's agreement with Lockheed Martin and the U.S. government concerns 88 F-35 aircraft. The value of each is $85 million. As with Portugal, the machines were to replace the older ones, which were equipped with an army of fighters. In this case, CF-18/
New units were to be delivered from 2026 to 2032. The contract has not yet been cancelled, and as the spokesperson for the Canadian Ministry of Defence reported, the country has already committed itself to buying the first 16 aircraft.
