Canadian soldiers with the 5th Canadian Division during Operation Nanook, the Canadian Armed Forces' annual Arctic training and sovereignty operation in March, 2025.COLE BURSTON/AFP/Getty Images

Jessica Shadian is president and CEO of Arctic360.

Pete Hoekstra, the U.S. ambassador to Canada, had it right when he spoke in Halifax last month: framing Canada’s troubles as a U.S. trade war isn’t a helpful strategy. The current crisis is much bigger, and it’s anchored to our neglected geography as an Arctic nation.

Canada’s Arctic coastline is bookended by Alaska and Greenland. Russia sits across the pond, sharing its Arctic borders with our Nordic neighbours. The Nordic countries are seeking greater Canadian co-operation as non-Arctic states – China, India, Iran – expand their presence in Russia’s Arctic, and the U.S. continues to pursue annexing Greenland and upend global trade. This is not about fighting a trade war; it’s about building a wartime economy.

The 2025 budget is expected to substantially increase defence spending while making significant cuts elsewhere. It will include building the five named nation-building infrastructure projects, with more to come, including several Arctic projects, requiring tens of billions of dollars in investment. In good times, Arctic investments are a hard sell; in times of austerity, the challenge will be exponential.

The Sunday Editorial: The three........

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