Once again Prime Minister Mark Carney is off on another trip, this time to Paris.  On Jan. 5 he met with the so-called “Coalition of the Willing” on Ukraine underscores a troubling misalignment in Ottawa’s policy priorities. Rather than confronting pressing domestic economic and defence challenges, the government is doubling down on foreign commitments that demand significant Canadian resources.

At the Paris talks, Carney and allied leaders signed a declaration outlining extensive post-war security guarantees for Ukraine, including long-term military assistance and an eventual multinational force to rebuild Ukrainian forces. Canada reaffirmed commitments to NATO and pledged contributions — including equipment and financing aligned with Ukraine’s needs.

Canada’s contribution to Ukraine is already substantial. Ottawa has committed more than $23 billion in aid since the Russian invasion began, including significant direct financial support and military equipment packages. This raises legitimate questions about trade-offs: are Canadian taxpayers being asked to finance overseas security while domestic needs go unmet?

Canada’s economic weaknesses persist. Real GDP rose only 0.6 per cent in the third quarter of 2025, reflecting tepid domestic demand and weak consumer spending, with much of the modest growth driven by higher government outlays. Statistics Canada data show that increased government capital spending — on infrastructure, defence and other long-term investment projects — contributed disproportionately to the uptick in GDP relative to flat private sector spending. Meanwhile, Ottawa has explicitly reoriented its fiscal strategy by distinguishing “capital” investment from day-to-day operating expenditures in Budget 2025. 

Under this approach, capital expenditures such as infrastructure and defence modernization are classified separately from routine operating spending — much of which continues to be financed by deficit and debt — a distinction that allows the government to present investment-led growth while the overall deficit remains elevated.

Household finances are strained; the national household debt-to-income ratio reached a record high of about 175 per cent in late 2025, meaning Canadians owe roughly $1.75 for every dollar of income. High debt loads suppress consumer spending, elevate financial vulnerability and make the population more sensitive to interest rate changes, particularly in the context of ongoing tariff pressure and trade uncertainty.

Carney’s Paris messaging included talk of possibly deploying Canadian troops to Ukraine as part of international security guarantees. However, Canada’s own military readiness and recruitment capacity raise questions about this pledge. A recent Auditor-General report highlighted that more than half of applicants to the Canadian Armed Forces fail to complete the recruitment process, leaving the CAF short of its authorized strength and undermining its ability to respond to domestic emergencies or strategic threats.

Ottawa has set ambitious targets to boost defence spending — including plans to reach NATO’s 2 per cent of GDP target and eventually 5 per cent by 2035 — but these commitments stretch the fiscal envelope and deflect attention from the immediate need to solidify Canada’s own defence capabilities.

Compounding the concerns is Chrystia Freeland’s appointment as an economic adviser to Ukraine while still serving as a Canadian MP and previously Canada’s special representative for reconstruction. Critics argue that this arrangement presents at minimum a conflict of interest — or at worst, a diversion of Canadian political capital toward advancing foreign interests.

Meanwhile, Canada’s trade posture with the United States hangs in limbo. Tariff disputes continue to stress the economy, with retaliatory tariffs and ongoing negotiations under the USMCA (CUSMA) framework. Carney acknowledged he would “wait and work” on CUSMA issues — even though CUSMA’s formal review mechanisms and provisions, including tariff consultations, are not set to conclude until mid-2026. This delay allows unresolved trade pressures to dampen Canadian exports and GDP growth, yet it garners far less attention than headline-grabbing foreign aid announcements.

Canadians rightly expect their leaders to defend national interests: economic stability, strong and capable defence forces and domestic prosperity. Instead, the Carney government’s focus on foreign military assistance, international security pacts and high-profile advisory appointments abroad risks neglecting those core responsibilities. With household debt at record levels, recruitment challenges in the military and continued economic uncertainty under global trade tensions, Ottawa should recalibrate priorities so that Canadian livelihoods and national security are front and centre — not subservient to distant geopolitical ambitions.