Changing the Guard: Canada's Defence in a World in Transition

J.L. Granatstein is a professor of History at York University and author
of Pirouette: Pierre Trudeau and Canadian Foreign Policy.

Canadian defence policy does not ordinarily rouse much passion in the
Canadian public, the media, or the academic world. We accept the
spending of $12 billion a year on defence, and Canadian Forces remain
out of mind until an Oka or a Gulf War demonstrate that this country has
efficient and effective men and women who carry out tough tasks with
skill and determination. Langille’s book is a critique of Canada’s
defence policy, one that focuses on the Trudeau government’s decision
to test Cruise missiles, the 1985 decision to maintain our nato forces
on the central front, and what is described as the shift toward
industrial preparation for a long war. These case studies, all
competently done, set the stage for a call for a new defence policy that
would see Canada act more independently and put greater stress on United
Nations peacekeeping.

When this book was being written, the Cold War was not yet over; for a
brief period, Langille must have thought his analysis might prevail. But
the Oka and Gulf crises demonstrated that the world—and
Canada—remain dangerous places. This book notwithstanding, it might be
too soon to pay off the troops.