Canada's approximately 1.3-percent defence share sat below NATO's two-percent expectation. The gap suggests room for greater capability without assuming that the existing force is inefficient. Shipbuilding comparisons with the United States can nevertheless make Canadian programmes appear corrupt or uniquely overpriced because the neighbouring navy builds large classes and spreads its development costs widely. Canada pays to sustain a domestic yard and integrate a national version of the design in a much smaller production run, so unit prices cannot be compared with American ships as though the industrial conditions were identical.
Chapter · 2:04:43-2:06:08
Canada's NATO spending gap and small-batch ship costs
Canada fielded capable forces at about 1.3 percent of GDP, while comparisons with mass-produced American ships obscured the cost of domestic construction and Canadian-specific design work.