Link to article: https://www.reuters.com/world/canada-talks-about-joining-expanded-aukus-defence-chief-blair-says-2024-09-13/
Canadian Defence Minister Bill Blair has reported that Canada, among others, is being considered to join AUKUS, a security pact between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America. The original members formed in an effort to lessen the growing grip that China has on the Indo-Pacific region. The expansion would focus on technological advancements, such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing. This information was revealed in an interview after Blair took a trip to Tokyo to meet with Japanese Defence Minister Minoru Kihara. Japan is already being considered to be a member of the new AUKUS along with South Korea. The reason Canada is in these talks in the first place is because the country is looking to increase its defence commitments overseas, with Blair stating that their defence spending will triple in the next few years.
I think this is a great idea for both parties. China is definitely getting a bit too handsy in the Indo-Pacific region, and it wouldn’t hurt to add more countries to AUKUS, which was formed for the purpose of preventing China from causing regional conflict. I’m interested to see what types of military technology require artificial intelligence and quantum computing. With AI being the new technological revolution, it makes sense that these countries would want to develop these technologies together and gain an upper hand. It’s interesting to see that Blair is projecting the tripling of the country’s defense spending. It sounds like they’re going all in and trying to build a reputation on the global scale.
This relates to class because AUKUS is an IGO, or inter-governmental organization. It’s a Military IGO because it’s a security pact that also focuses on shared technological advancement. Another way this story relates to class is because it involves the U.K., Canada, Australia, and the U.S., who are all multi-nation states, which are countries comprised of a multitude of different ethnicities.