University of British Columbia Press
The Price of Alliance
The Politics and Procurement of Leopard Tanks for Canada’s NATO Brigade
Distributed for University of British Columbia Press
The Price of Alliance
The Politics and Procurement of Leopard Tanks for Canada’s NATO Brigade
The first major reappraisal of Pierre Trudeau’s controversial defence policy, The Price of Alliance uses the 1976 procurement of Leopard tanks for Canada’s troops in Europe to shed light on Canada’s relationship with NATO. After six years of pressure from Canada’s allies, Trudeau was convinced that Canadian tanks in Europe were necessary to support foreign policy objectives, and the tanks symbolized an increased Canadian commitment to NATO. Drawing on interviews and records from Canada, NATO, the United States, and Germany, Frank Maas addresses the problems of defence policymaking within a multi-country alliance and the opportunities and difficulties of Canadian defence procurement.
Table of Contents
Introduction
1 The 1964 White Paper on Defence: Responding to a New Strategic Context
2 The Traditionalists at Work: Renegotiating NATO Commitments in 1967
3 Trudeau Takes the Reins: The Triumph of the Revisionists
4 The Summer of 1969: Consultations with Allies
5 The Revisionists Assert Control: Defence in the 70s
6 The Scorpion and the Centurion: The Nadir of the Civil Military Crisis
7 Tanks, Trade, and Strategy: Trudeau Relents
8 “From a Beetle to a Porsche”: The Purchase of the Leopard
Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Index