Canada and UK could merge war chests to fight Russia – media

Canada and the UK are considering merging two major military financing initiatives to help European NATO members and other Kiev backers finance their military buildup against Russia, the CBC reported on Wednesday, citing anonymous officials.

In recent years, European NATO nations have increasingly accused Moscow of preparing an attack on members of the US-led military bloc, using the alleged threat to justify bloated military budgets. Moscow has denied any such intention.

Canada is leading plans for the Defense, Security and Resilience Bank (DSRB), while the UK is pushing for the Multilateral Defense Mechanism (MDM). Both initiatives are intended to make it easier for allied states to finance military purchases and expand arms production.

In July, Carney failed to entice then-UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer to join the DSRB as a founding member. However, Burnham’s government is more aligned with Canada on the issue, the CBC reported, citing an anonymous Canadian official.

Ottawa is confident the two countries will reach a deal to combine their initiatives into a joint institution, the Canadian Press reported last week, citing a senior Canadian official.

So far, Ottawa’s DSRB has attracted support from Albania, Belgium, Greece, Latvia, Luxembourg, Romania, Türkiye, and Ukraine. The Netherlands, Finland, and Poland have backed the UK’s MDM.

The plans come as NATO countries escalate their military spending. Last year, following pressure from US President Donald Trump, bloc members agreed to invest 5% of their GDP annually in their militaries and defense-related areas by 2035.

In the meantime, European NATO members have increasingly touted the Russian threat to militarize and prepare the continent for a potential war with Moscow, all while insulating the US from the consequences of such a conflict.

“European elites… now seek to frighten their populations with a mythical Russian threat,” Russian President Vladimir Putin told journalists at a BRICS summit earlier in September, stressing that Moscow has “no grounds for any conflict with Europe.”