Posted on 06/21/2018 7:36:05 PM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada is discussing changes to a multibillion-dollar fighter jet procurement process that could make it harder for a U.S. company to win the order as trade relations between the neighbors sour, two sources with direct knowledge of the discussions said.
Canada is considering whether to penalize companies from countries that have caused it economic damage, the sources said on Wednesday. While a final decision is not expected before next year and the threat could be posturing, the move shows how the Trump administration’s trade disputes are spilling over into other areas.
A spokeswoman for federal Procurement Minister Carla Qualtrough - who has overall responsibility for major purchases of military equipment - declined to comment. Sources declined to be identified as the discussions are confidential.
Boeing Co’s (BA.N) F-18 Super Hornet and Lockheed Martin Corp’s (LMT.N) F-35 fighter were among the favorites to capture the contract to supply 88 planes, worth between C$15 billion ($11.3 billion) and C$19 billion.
Defense sources have long said the Canadian air force would prefer an American-built jet, citing the importance of operating easily with U.S. armed forces.
But a change in procurement terms would give more of a chance to European suppliers: Airbus SE (AIR.PA), which makes the Eurofighter; Saab AB (SAABb.ST), which makes the Gripen; and Dassault Aviation (AVMD.PA), which makes the Rafale.
Defense sources, however, say the European jets are likely to become obsolete by around 2040, at which point they could no longer incorporate the latest technologies.
(Excerpt) Read more at ca.reuters.com ...
Trudeau already screwed the Fighter Jet thing up long ago ,now it’s Tantrum Time
Canada started a trade war with the US without considering the fact that it is holding no cards. None. This is a pathetic effort at smoke and mirrors, acting like they have something to bargain with when they do not.
We can, and should, completely shut down the Canadian economy in response to Trudeau’s blustering betrayal following the G-6+1.
This comment pretty much sums it up. Without US goods and services, Canada would become Greece with a Tundra.
After that, both Canada and the US(under Bush 1) began negotiating a bilateral agreement with Mexico. But they all quickly decided that a single trilateral agreement would be better than 3 bilateral agreements.
So the bilateral agreement between the US and Canada was rolled into the NAFTA trilateral.
Dang commies.
I don’t think that ability to operate with the U.S. military will be all that important going forward. And I think the fear of obsolescence of the European design it probably overblown - if the RCAF goes with Hornets again what will their capabilities be like in 22 years? Finally, from a political standpoint this is probably not a great time for the government to award $20 billion contracts to the U.S. Likely get a better price from Europe anyway.
Canada has been short changing its military for a long time. I doubt a couple of airplanes will mean much in the cross border trade talks. Maybe Canada can arm a couple of Bombardier jets?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.