Canada to support NATO Latvia mission with Oshawa-built military vehicles

Canada will continue to support NATO’s Operation Reassurance in Latvia, designed to deter Russian aggression, by sending another 90 Oshawa-made military vehicles to Canadian Forces on the ground.

National Defense Minister Bill Blair announced the new fleet for the long-running operation on July 24, nearly ten years into Canada’s commitment. The Operation began in 2014 following the Russian annexation of Crimea.

“Canada’s commitment to NATO’s and Latvia’s security is steadfast. Through this project and other key investments, Canada is doing its part to help scale up the multinational NATO Battle Group in Latvia to a full-size brigade – strengthening our defensive and deterrent posture on the Alliance’s eastern flank,” Blair said.

In recent months, Canada has expanded its operations in the region. By 2026, there are expected to be 2,200 Canadian Forces soldiers deployed in Latvia from Canada’s base in Riga, the nation’s capital.

To support this expansion, the Federal Government is allocating $35.8 million to send 90 light tactical vehicles which “will enable the Canadian Army to operate more effectively in complex terrain and isolated locations that larger vehicles cannot access. They will also be used to transport combat equipment, which will reduce the loads carried by individual soldiers.”

Canada has contracted General Motors’ Oshawa plant to build 36 cargo and 54 personnel variants of the vehicles. The personnel carriers can transport teams of nine soldiers while the cargo units can move large loads as well as two-to-four-person squads.

These vehicles will primarily be driven by the Canadian Army’s Light Force infantry soldiers. The fleet has a life expectancy of about 15 years.

They will “carry weapons, personal effects, and combat supplies for 72 hours of self-sufficient operation.” Additionally, the contract includes two years of support for part and the potential order of 18 more units.

“We are providing this critical capability to the Canadian Armed Forces within a timeline that meets their urgent operational requirement,” said Steve duMont, president of GM Defense. “We see this contract award as the beginning of a long strategic partnership with the Canadian Armed Forces to provide enhanced tactical mobility for Soldiers today, and into the future.

The first five units are set to be finished later this month to train soldiers on their use by late August. All remaining vehicles will arrive in Latvia by October, the government predicts.

Background

Operation Reassurance began after the opening of the Russo-Ukrainian War in 2014. In February of that year, Ukrainians ousted President Viktor Yanukovych, long an ally to Russian President Vladimir Putin, during the Revolution of Dignity.

While Ukraine achieved independence from the USSR in 1991 (first recognized by Canada under Prime Minister Brian Mulroney), Yanukovych pursued a close alliance with Russia and resisted NATO ties.

Following the loss of his ally, Putin invaded Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula amid the power vacuum. By March Russia had fully annexed the peninsula following a widely condemned referendum conducted under occupation.

The annexation was widely condemned and was only recognized by eight UN members. It resulted in significant economic and diplomatic sanctions from Canada, the European Union and the United States.

These NATO allies also immediately pledged support to neighbouring states. The NATO Enhanced Forward Presence including the Baltics (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) and Poland. Canada took the lead in Latvia.

Canadian Armed Forces first arrived in the region in 2016 and set up the Riga base by 2017. There have since been 1,375 Canadian Armed Forces members deployed. They were later joined by several Canadian naval vessels over the last few years.

Though Russian aggression largely called following the annexation, Putin resumed full hostilities in February 2022. Russia launched a full invasion of Ukraine. By September they had annexed four further Ukrainian oblasts (provinces), which like Crimea has not been recognized by the international community.

Ukraine, now led by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, launched several counter-offensives that reclaimed some territory (including the city of Kherson and Kharkiv Oblast). However, they have been unable to fully oust the occupying Russians who have since dug in deeply. Fighting continues on the front lines and Russia has stepped up its missile and drone strikes in recent months.

The 2022 invasion was widely condemned in the international community. This brought numerous new diplomatic and economic sanctions and the expansion of NATO Enhanced Forward Presence.

NATO forces are now deployed in Bulgaria (led by Italy), Estonia (UK), Hungary, Latvia (Canada), Lithuania (Germany), Poland (US), Romania (France) and Slovakia (Spain).

Despite the new expansion Canada has long been criticized for not hitting its NATO spending goals. Each member nation is expected to contribute two per cent of its GDP to the organization following the Russian Invasion.

Currently 23 of the 32 members meet the two per cent goal. NATO has requested a plan from each of the countries that don’t. Despite some vocal doubt about the efficacy of the two per cent target, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pledged to meet it by 2032 at a recent NATO summit in Washington D.C.

Latvia

What is now modern Latvia was incorporated into the Russian Empire between the 1770s and the 1790s and developed rapidly over the following two centuries. For example, Riga became the Empire’s largest port.

The 19th Century brought the First National Awakening which birthed a strong sense of national Latvian identity. However, the First World War devastated the region and led, in part, to the 1917 Russian Revolution.

In the resulting power vacuum, Latvia declared independence (not for the last time) in November 1918. However, the newly Soviet Russia was not keen to let Latvia go leading to the Latvian War of Independence (1918-1920) between three forces.

Latvian parliament first sat in 1920 with a new constitution in 1922. However, former Prime Minister Kārlis Ulmanis led a coup d’etat in 1934 and suspended it.

Ulmanis dominated Latvia until the Soviet invasion in 1940. Soviet administrators violently took over Latvia officials and replaced numerous politicians while running unopposed. More than 34,000 Latvians were murdered or deported (mostly to Siberia).

The Nazi German invasion in 1941 supported Latvian uprisings to push Russian occupation out. However, the Nazis then planned to eliminate a full half of the Latvian population in their efforts to eradicate Slavic peoples. During the Second World War, at least 200,000 Latvian civilians were killed including 75,000 Jews murdered in the Holocaust.

The USSR pushed back the German invasion, reaching Latvia by 1944. After heavy fighting, the Soviets once more regained control of Latvia and reinstituted their systems. This prompted a mass exodus of up to 300,000 Latvian refugees.

The USSR maintained control of Latvia until the Soviet collapse in 1991, though their influence waned by the mid-1980s. Following their renewed independence, Latvia joined both NATO and the EU in 2004.