Canada’s ambassador to the United States says the country is looking for an administration willing to deepen its defence relationship, as North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies watch closely to see what the Democratic National Convention might reveal about how Kamala Harris might approach foreign policy.
Ambassador Kirsten Hillman expects Mme Harris is following President Joe Biden’s lead on defense, but says the vice president has emphasized a different approach: focusing on the Western Hemisphere.
Which will be essential for any president, Mr.me Hillman is to continue defense partnerships and expand opportunities for production cooperation with Canada.
Mme Hillman was speaking on Tuesday at a panel on NATO with British Ambassador Karen Pierce and Estonian Ambassador Kristjan Prikk on the sidelines of the convention in Chicago.
Thousands of Democratic Party loyalists are gathering this week to capitalize on the growing enthusiasm since Mr.me Harris has taken over as the Democratic nominee ahead of the November presidential election.
The enthusiasm among supporters has not waned as the convention continues with party faithful, many wearing “Harris” sweaters or bright blue sequined hats, arriving in droves for various events and to hear speakers.
The convention, however, provided little insight into what approach a potential Harris administration would take to foreign policy.
The stakes of the war in Ukraine and Russia
On the first night of the convention, Mr. Biden delivered a speech detailing his administration’s accomplishments, which he said included strengthening NATO and fighting Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“We united Europe in a way it hasn’t been united in years by adding Finland and Sweden to NATO,” Biden said in his speech Monday night.
Concerns about Mr Biden’s health and the possibility of a second Donald Trump presidency cast a shadow over the defence alliance’s leaders’ summit in Washington last month. Just over a week later, Mr Biden announced he was ending his presidential campaign, pledging his support to Mrme Harris.
Mr. Trump has spoken harshly about NATO and threatened not to defend members that don’t meet spending targets, including Canada. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said last month that Canada plans to meet a goal of spending 2 per cent of its gross domestic product on defence by 2032.
Mr Trump has also raised the possibility of ending aid to Ukraine, and his Republican running mate, JD Vance, said at the Munich Security Conference earlier this year that the US should move away from defence in Europe.
Many European leaders have argued that support for the defense alliance has become even more important with Russia’s war against Ukraine.
As kyiv’s recent incursion into Russia’s western region changes the trajectory of the war, Democratic Representative Jim Himes said a second Trump presidency would be devastating for U.S. relations and security around the world.
Mr. Himes, who is a Connecticut lawmaker, publicly called on Mr. Biden to withdraw his candidacy after a lackluster performance at the NATO summit. Mr. Himes said the stakes were too high to risk losing.
“A Donald Trump presidency is a presidency in which we will likely walk away from our commitment to our NATO allies. We will likely walk away from support for Ukraine, we will likely do a lot of things (to) encourage Vladimir Putin,” Himes said during a panel discussion at the CNN-Politico Grill on the sidelines of the convention.
Changes under Harris?
His supporters claimed that Mr.me Harris sees the importance of global alliances in security and defense. Additionally, Himes said, Mme Harris understands that the world has become a more complicated environment for defense efforts.
But it is not certain that Mme Harris will act differently from her predecessor. The Democratic Party’s 2024 platform, approved Monday, has not been updated to reflect the fact that Mr. Biden is no longer running for reelection.
Mr. Prikk said that whatever party forms the next administration, he believes it should recognize that American and European allies “share fundamental and vital interests.”
Among the opportunities offered by a new administration, Mr.me Hillman noted that Canada is keen to engage with its allies under AUKUS, a U.S.-led alliance with the United Kingdom and Australia.
Earlier this year, Trudeau raised the possibility of joining AUKUS for its second phase, which would focus on advanced capabilities such as quantum computing, artificial intelligence and cyber technologies.
“We are optimistic about everything we bring to this partnership,” Mr.me Hillman during the panel at the CNN-Politico Grill.