FORUM DE DEFENSE ET DE STRATEGIE
The Transatlantic Security Architecture and the Potential of the Franco-Canadian Alliance
By Léa Pérémarty and Leah Schmidt
December 21th 2024
Summary
The transatlantic security architecture, based on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the European Union (EU), is critical to European and North American stability, but it faces increasing problems in confronting Russian and Chinese threats. NATO’s reinforced Eastern European defences and financial contributions to Ukraine’s military operations demonstrate its responsiveness, but the EU’s reliance on US leadership highlight continuing weaknesses.
France has taken the lead in advocating for European sovereignty and greater NATO-EU cooperation. Meanwhile, Canada’s own commitments shows its strategic potential, particularly in the Arctic, despite shortcomings in national defence. However, concerns remain about NATO’s coherence, the reliability of US assistance, and Europe’s willingness to take greater responsibility for its security. With NATO and Europe potentially facing the most severe “hot war” crisis since World War II, the central question is: What’s next for transatlantic security?
Key Recommendations:
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Focus NATO investments on strategic areas like cybersecurity, Arctic surveillance, and hybrid warfare.
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Reinforce a culture of shared responsibility within NATO, promoting a balanced alliance where each country’s contributions align with their strengths and capabilities.
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Strength partnerships between France, Canada, and other allies now to help NATO hedge against future volatility in U.S. foreign policy allowing to ensure a robust and more autonomous transatlantic security architecture regardless of American political shifts.
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Secure NATO’s Arctic interests by leveraging Canada’s Arctic expertise.
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Create a NATO Logistics Command Center to streamline troop movements and supply routes, with Canada and France leading by example in logistical efficiency.
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Establish a Transatlantic Task Force on Hybrid Threat Resilience to counter cyberattacks, disinformation, and economic coercion.
This policy report, published by the Network for Strategic Analysis (RAS-NSA), is part of the Personnalités d'Avenir France Canada program on defense issues, 2024 edition, organized by the FDS and the France-Canada Association, with the support of the Department of National Defence of Canada’s Mobilizing Insights in Defence and Security (MINDS) program.