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When Wars Lose Their “Why”

In the Iran conflict, tactical success is outpacing strategic clarity, leaving the narrative that sustains legitimacy increasingly fragile.

friday 5

OpenCanada

Dominique arseneau-bruneau

Canada Is Measuring Digital Government Against the Wrong Model

International rankings can tell us how Canada appears online. They tell us much less about whether a federation can govern digital infrastructure,...

21.05.2026 5

OpenCanada

Patrick spencer

Canada Cannot Build a Credible Africa Strategy Without Morocco

Ottawa’s shift on Western Sahara signals a broader test: whether Canada is prepared to build an Africa strategy around real anchor partnerships, not...

21.05.2026 5

OpenCanada

Daniel Robson

Feminism at the Margins of Militarism: Security and Defence Policy in Canada

Abandoning the label does not resolve the contradictions at the heart of Canada’s gender-inclusive foreign policy.

20.05.2026 5

OpenCanada

Ava crossett

Decoding CUSMA with Louise Blais

Louise Blais returns for a special episode on CUSMA, joining […]

16.05.2026 10

OpenCanada

Cic Staff

What Built the Canada–U.S. Relationship

Shared resources, not shared values, have long defined Canada–U.S. relations, and still do.

14.05.2026 8

OpenCanada

Daniel Macfarlane

Canada’s Settlement Trade Contradiction

Canada has repeatedly condemned Israeli settlements as incompatible with international law and a two-state solution. So why do goods produced in those...

13.05.2026 10

OpenCanada

Steven Zhou

A Hammer Without a Handshake

Canada is expanding its military ambitions while weakening the diplomatic capacity needed to carry them out.

13.05.2026 10

OpenCanada

Stefan venceljovski

​Does the Trump-Xi Summit Signal a G2 World? with Howard Balloch

Just days before Donald Trump is set to meet Xi […]

11.05.2026 10

OpenCanada

Cic Staff

The Return of Middle-Power Diplomacy in the Gulf

Why Canada could help build new institutional pathways amid the Israel-Iran crisis.

07.05.2026 10

OpenCanada

Patrice brodeur

Should Canadians Resist, Surrender or Rebel Against Trump? The American Revolution Provides Some Guidance

A strained relationship with a dominant power, unpredictable leadership, and deep dependence, Canadians now face a dilemma the American colonists...

06.05.2026 10

OpenCanada

Madelaine Drohan

Canada Should Work With Washington on Critical Minerals Without Deferring to It

Allies are coordinating on critical minerals. Canada risks losing leverage unless it engages Washington on its own terms.

04.05.2026 10

OpenCanada

Robert M. Cutler

What Does Cohere’s Merger Mean for Canada’s Digital and Economic Sovereignty?

Canada’s AI race does not have to end in foreign ownership. Cohere’s European merger shows how that trajectory can be changed.

01.05.2026 10

OpenCanada

Daria synelnykova

Landmines and Leadership: The Case for a Values‑Driven Economic and Security Policy

How humanitarian demining allows Canada to align its economic interests, security priorities, and commitment to the Ottawa Treaty in a rapidly...

01.05.2026 10

OpenCanada

Anne Delorme

Optimism Gap with Jon Allen

Canadians are unusually anxious about the world, polling suggests, but […]

29.04.2026 10

OpenCanada

Cic Staff

The Illusion of American Protection: Gulf States’ Leverage, War, and the Case for Collective Security

How the war on Iran exposed the limits of U.S. protection and forced Gulf states to rethink their security strategy.

29.04.2026 10

OpenCanada

Mohammad yaghi

The Ukraine War and Russia’s Status as a Great Power

How Russia Lost Its Status—and Why It Cannot Easily Regain It.

23.04.2026 10

OpenCanada

Janko Šćepanović

Canada’s Arctic Choice: Ahead of NATO’s Ankara Summit

Canada should arrive in Ankara ready to push NATO toward a more practical Arctic posture —one that clarifies priorities for situational awareness,...

23.04.2026 10

OpenCanada

Nicole Jackson

NATO Does Not Need Another Nuclear Sharing Arrangement

France’s new “advanced deterrence” doctrine risks increasing proliferation and eventually undermines the Alliance’s security environment.

22.04.2026 20

OpenCanada

David gaillot

The Paradox of Taiwan’s Foreign Policy

As democracy comes under strain, Taiwan’s reliance on the United States reflects Canada’s experience.

16.04.2026 10

OpenCanada

Wu yang

Who Will Build AI for the Public?

Why Canada must lead a coalition of democracies to build the open, ethical, and trustworthy artificial intelligence the world needs.

15.04.2026 10

OpenCanada

Ana Serrano

Is War with Iran “Legal” and How Much Does it Matter?

When the rules run out, who decides what counts as war.

14.04.2026 30

OpenCanada

Jack Cunningham

When Diplomacy Disappears

What do countries lose when they no longer have diplomats […]

13.04.2026 10

OpenCanada

Cic Staff

When Alliances Stall: Hormuz and the Limits of Western Solidarity

The Strait of Hormuz is not just testing maritime security, it is exposing a shift in how Western alliances operate, from reflexive alignment to...

09.04.2026 20

OpenCanada

Abbas Qaidari

Arctic Fever: Canada’s Ambitions in the North

As the Arctic becomes more strategic, Canada must balance security, development, and its commitments to Indigenous communities and the environment.

08.04.2026 10

OpenCanada

Matthew da mota

Canada’s Principal Power Moment

Canada’s capabilities and alliances position it to act beyond the traditional limits of a middle power in a fragmented global order.

07.04.2026 20

OpenCanada

John kirton

The Defence We Can No Longer Defer: Inside Canada’s Defence Industrial Strategy

CIC Executive Director Melanie Walker in Conversation with Defence Expert Wendy Gilmour.

06.04.2026 10

OpenCanada

Wendy gilmour

Canada is Not Ready for the Security Threats It Faces

The military has a framework for readiness that civilian agencies badly need.

03.04.2026 20

OpenCanada

Leanne j. smythe

Canada’s Displaced Vanguard and the Carney Doctrine

Canada is looking outward for resilience while ignoring expertise already inside its borders.

01.04.2026 20

OpenCanada

Philip Leech-Ngo

The Political Institutions of the Islamic Republic of Iran

The recent leadership change has exposed the deeper architecture of power in Iran.

26.03.2026 30

OpenCanada

Dr. alan siaroff

Ukraine Will Probably Have to Cede Territory to Russia. What Should Happen Next?

How Ukraine can lose territory without surrendering its future.

26.03.2026 20

OpenCanada

Peter harris

Canada’s Military Can Help Solve the Housing Crisis

Aligning defence investment with economic development is not a new idea. It is a Canadian tradition.

25.03.2026 20

OpenCanada

Daniel Cere

Is Cuba Next? with Mark Entwistle

25.03.2026 20

OpenCanada

Cic Staff

What a Cold War Nuclear Reactor Can Teach us About Canada’s Quantum Future

The Chalk River site offers a blueprint for how alliance collaboration drives science and technology innovation.

24.03.2026 30

OpenCanada

Joanne archibald

Japan’s Historic Landslide: Why it Happened and What Takaichi’s Victory Means

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi turned a short, snap election into a personal referendum on her leadership, producing a record landslide victory.

23.03.2026 30

OpenCanada

Dr. alan siaroff

The New American Threat: Is Canada Vulnerable?

Survey data suggests Canadians are moving toward security-focused values in uncertain times, and continue to reject the MAGA movement.

20.03.2026 20

OpenCanada

Michael Adams

Preserving Canadian Culture in the Platform Era

What Canada’s Online Streaming Act Is Trying to Defend.

18.03.2026 30

OpenCanada

Christine rose cooling

Young Voters and the Politics of Perception

In an ecosystem increasingly shaped by AI, trust and legitimacy depend on more than just procedural integrity.

17.03.2026 30

OpenCanada

Madeleine case

Chatbots and Canada’s AI Governance Gap

Young Canadians have identified the risks of AI chatbots and the policy solutions. Ottawa now needs the political will to act.

12.03.2026 30

OpenCanada

Helen A. Hayes

Carney Shelves Canada’s Feminist Foreign Policy But Little Has Changed

Does the current Prime Minister’s approach really differ from his predecessor’s?

10.03.2026 30

OpenCanada

Taylor robertson mcdonald

Women with Disabilities Have been Misfitting in Canada’s Foreign Policy for Thirty Years

They brought the knowledge to change it. The question is whether Canada will bring the resources.

09.03.2026 20

OpenCanada

Deborah stienstra

New World Disorder from Tehran to Caracas with Ben Rowswell

09.03.2026 20

OpenCanada

Cic Staff

Making Migration Part of Canada’s Feminist Foreign Policy Future

Canada champions gender-responsive migration governance abroad. When will it develop a feminist foreign policy which incorporates migration?

09.03.2026 20

OpenCanada

Allison J. Petrozziello

Trump’s foreign policy is not transactional. It is tributary.

The framing that has dominated analysis of Trump since 2017 misses what has actually changed in his second term.

05.03.2026 30

OpenCanada

Robert s. snyder

Iran and How (Not) to do Regime Change

Military strikes by American and Israeli forces have left Iran destabilized and uncertain about its future leadership, thus igniting a war of regime...

04.03.2026 30

OpenCanada

Jack Cunningham

The Off-the-Shelf Doctrine: Canada’s Geopolitical 52-Card Pickup

Carney sold candour at Davos. His first major crisis produced a photocopy – alliance discipline dressed up as judgment.

03.03.2026 40

OpenCanada

Narendra Pachkhédé

After the Rules-Based Order: Why Canada’s Global Health Leadership Will Depend on Legitimacy, Trust, and Lived Experience

When Prime Minister Mark Carney told leaders at the World […]

02.03.2026 40

OpenCanada

Linxi Mytkolli

The Illusion of Control: Miscalculation and the Road to War with Iran

War has erupted between the United States, Israel, and Iran, shattering assumptions that calibrated pressure could prevent a wider conflict.

01.03.2026 30

OpenCanada

Mohammad yaghi

Cuba Libre?

Is Trump’s new blockade pushing Cuba toward democracy, a hostile takeover, or just chaos?

28.02.2026 70

OpenCanada

Yvon Grenier

In Munich, Did Rubio Reframe or Rephrase?

Did Marco Rubio present a gentler view of transatlantic relations […]

26.02.2026 30

OpenCanada

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