The Canadian American Strategic Review was an influential Canadian think-tank that comments on Canadian Defence and sovereignty issues. [1] [2] [3]
The think-tank operated, for many years, from the campus of Simon Fraser University. [4]
In 2007 the Canwest News Services cited one of the think-tank's papers on the option of employing Canadian Forces smaller CH-146 Griffon helicopters to Afghanistan. [4]
In 2008 the US Naval War College's International Law Studies cited one of the think-tank's papers on Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper's 2005 change in Defence policy. [5]
In 2009 Peter Worthington cited one of the review's papers that statistically analyzed the safety of the vehicles the Canadian Forces used in Afghanistan. [6]
In 2016, Steven Chase repeatedly quoted the Review's Stephen Priestley when The Globe and Mail reported on how Saudi Arabia used Canadian made light armored vehicles in ways that violated their export license. [7] [8] [9] The reporting raised questions about a new Saudi order for an additional $15 billion order. Nominally the vehicles were purchased for Saudi Arabia's National Guard, but news footage showed them being used by the Saudi army's expeditionary force, against rebel forces in Yemen, a violation of the export license.
The group's website was officially closed down on 31 December 2016. [3]
In her bibliography of Polar Imperative: A History of Arctic Sovereignty in North America, Shelagh D. Grant described the think tank as one of two sources of "particular significance". [1]
Joint Task Force 2 is an elite Tier 1 special operations force of the Canadian Armed Forces, serving under the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command. JTF 2 is known to work with other special operations forces such as the American Delta Force and Seal Team Six, the British Special Air Service and Special Boat Service, and the Australian Special Air Service Regiment and 2nd Commando Regiment. JTF2 has also distinguished itself as a world-class special operations unit.
The Bell CH-146 Griffon is a multi-role utility helicopter designed by Bell Helicopter Textron as a variant of the Bell 412EP for the Canadian Armed Forces. The CH-146 is used in a wide variety of roles, including aerial firepower, reconnaissance, search and rescue and aero-mobility tasks.
The Mowag Piranha is a family of armoured fighting vehicles designed by the Swiss company Mowag.
The Royal Canadian Air Force is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2020, the Royal Canadian Air Force consists of 12,074 Regular Force and 1,969 Primary Reserve personnel, supported by 1,518 civilians, and operates 258 manned aircraft and nine unmanned aerial vehicles. Lieutenant-General Eric Kenny is the current commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force and chief of the Air Force Staff.
The AVGP, later known as the LAV I, is a series of three amphibious armoured fighting vehicles ordered by the Canadian military in the 1970s. The vehicles, named Grizzly, Cougar and Husky respectively, were based on the six-wheeled version of the Swiss Mowag Piranha I, and became the first generation Light Armoured Vehicle produced by General Motors Diesel.
The Sikorsky CH-148 Cyclone is a twin-engine, multi-role shipborne helicopter developed by the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation for the Canadian Armed Forces. A military variant of the Sikorsky S-92, the CH-148 is designed for shipboard operations and replaced the CH-124 Sea King, which was in Canadian Armed Forces operation from 1963 to 2018.
Gordon James O'Connor, is a retired brigadier-general, businessman, and lobbyist, who served as Conservative Member of Parliament from 2004 to 2015.
The LAV III is the third generation of the Light Armoured Vehicle (LAV) family of armored personnel carriers built by General Dynamics Land Systems – Canada (GDLS-C), a London, Ontario, based subsidiary of General Dynamics. It first entered service in 1999, succeeding the LAV II. It is the primary mechanized infantry vehicle of both the Canadian Army and the New Zealand Army. It also forms the basis of the Stryker vehicle used by the U.S. Army and other operators. The Canadian Army is upgrading its LAV IIIs to the LAV 6 standard. Early in its development history it was referred to as the 'Kodiak', but the name was never officially adopted.
The Canadian Global Affairs Institute (CGAI) is an independent, non-partisan research institute based in Calgary with offices in Ottawa. Incorporated as a charitable organization in 2000, the institute seeks to focus the national debate and understanding of Canada's international policies, with the ultimate aim of ensuring a more globally engaged Canada.
David Allison Fraser is a retired Canadian Forces officer who served as a major-general in Land Force Command. The country’s first general officer to command American troops in combat since the Second World War, Fraser's most noteworthy role was as brigadier-general during Operation Medusa, which took place in Afghanistan from September 1–17, 2006 as part of NATO’s coalition efforts in the region.
The number of Canadian Forces' fatalities resulting from Canadian military activities in Afghanistan is the largest for any single Canadian military mission since the Korean War between 1950 and 1953. A total of 159 Canadian Forces personnel have been killed in the war since 2002.
The Conservative Party Government of Canada led by Prime Minister Stephen Harper has been characterized as a great break from the previous 70 years of post-war Canadian diplomacy. Indeed, Harper moved away from the multilateral and internationalist policies of the Liberal Party, and reduced Canada's emphasis on the United Nations, peacekeeping, conflict resolution, and multilateralism.
The Canadian Special Operations Regiment is a special forces unit of the Canadian Armed Forces and forms part of Canadian Special Operations Forces Command (CANSOFCOM). The regiment's roles include conducting complex or difficult raids, capturing strategic facilities and undertaking reconnaissance.
Michael Byers is a Canadian legal scholar and non-fiction author.
The Multi-Mission Effects Vehicle (MMEV) was a dual-purpose short range surface-to-air and anti-tank platform intended for use by the Canadian Forces. It was based on Air Defense Anti-Tank System (ADATS) technology, and integrated onto an 8×8 wheeled LAV III. The MMEV project was canceled in November 2006.
The Nanuk is a remote weapon station (RWS) used for light and medium calibre weapons which can be installed on any type of armoured vehicles or Brown water patrol vessel. It is designed by Rheinmetall Canada, in Quebec, Canada. The word Nanuk (ᓇᓄᖅ) means "polar bear" in Inuktitut.
Operation Nanook is an annual sovereignty operation and manoeuvre warfare exercise conducted by the Canadian Armed Forces in the Arctic. Sovereignty patrols in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago and northern Canada are conducted by the Canadian Rangers, Canadian Coast Guard in tandem with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The exercise portion is intended to train the different elements of the Canadian Armed Forces to operate in the Arctic environment.
The Light Armoured Vehicle (LAV) is a series of armoured vehicles built by General Dynamics Land Systems – Canada (GDLS-C), a London, Ontario-based subsidiary of General Dynamics. It is a license-produced version of the Mowag Piranha. The first generation of LAV was created by Mowag for the Armoured Vehicle General Purpose (AVGP) requirement of the Canadian Army. This was a 6x6 variant of the Piranha I produced by General Motors Diesel in London, Ontario. Since entering service in 1976, it has undergone a number of upgrades. The LAV II introduced the now-familiar 8x8 configuration. The LAV continues to form the backbone of the Canadian Army's combat vehicle fleet. The LAV series of vehicles exist in a number of different variants and are used in a number of different roles such as armoured personnel carriers, engineering vehicles, command posts, ambulances and armoured recovery vehicles.
Two other sources of particular significance are the Canadian Library of Parliament, which provides updated reports on the status and chronology of events for Arctic sovereignty, and the Canadian American Strategic Review (CASR), which offers detailed descriptions of current military status and procurements of the circumpolar countries.
The Canadian American Strategic Review site recently laid out the pros and cons. Here is what they write (with the link to their site below):
After fifteen years in operation, it seems like a good time for CASR staff to take stock. The consensus was that it was now time to bow out and to move on to other projects.
The Canadian American Strategic Review, a defence-oriented Internet site operated out of Simon Fraser University, points out that until July 2006 the U.S. Marines flew convoy escort duties from Kandahar airfield in Huey helicopters. Those choppers are similar to the Griffons but less powerful, the site adds. It also questioned why the marines can operate such choppers when the Canadian Forces considers the local conditions in Kandahar too extreme for the Griffons.
The measures announced by Prime Minister Harper were those contained in the "Canada First" defense plan of the Conservative Party during the 2005-2006 election campaign. For the details of the measure see Dianne DeMille & Stephen Priestley, Stephen Harper announces the new defence policy put forward by the Conservative Party of Canada...
Citing security reasons, DND won't reveal the casualty rate in Leopard II tanks in Afghanistan, or the casualty rate in vehicles. The Canadian American Strategic Review (CASR) has assessed incidents where casualties have occurred in roadside bombs, on the assumption if someone is wounded or killed in a blast, the vehicle is likely irreparably damaged.
Stephen Priestley, a researcher with the Canadian American Strategic Review, a think tank that tracks defence spending, also identified the LAVs as Canadian-made.
Stephen Priestley, a researcher with the Canadian American Strategic Review, a think tank that tracks defence spending, also identified the vehicles in all these instances as Gurkhas.
Stephen Priestley, a researcher with the Canadian American Strategic Review, a think tank that tracks defence spending, said he believes the armoured vehicles featured in the videos supplied by Shia activists are Al-Mansour machines made by a company called Saudi Groups.