U.S. pauses Permanent Joint Board on Defense with Canada

The United States has paused a longstanding bilateral defense advisory forum with Canada, a move that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney described as not being of overriding importance. The U.S. Department of Defense announced the suspension of the Permanent Joint Board on Defense on Sunday, stating the pause is intended to reassess how the forum benefits shared North American defense.

Prime Minister Carney, speaking at a news conference in Quebec, acknowledged the board's long heritage but sought to downplay the significance of the U.S. decision. He emphasized that close defense cooperation with the United States would continue across many other aspects. Carney stated that Canada will also be cooperating with other international partners and diversifying its defense cooperation.

The U.S. undersecretary of defense for policy, Elbridge Colby, announced the board is being frozen. In a statement, Colby claimed Canada had failed to make credible progress on its defense commitments. He added that the United States can no longer avoid the gaps between rhetoric and reality, sharing a link to a transcript of a speech Carney gave at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January.