Navy Commander Defends Need for 15 New Warships as Ottawa Reassesses Costs

Vice-Admiral Angus Topshee speaks with a reporter during an interview at the National Defence Headquarters in Ottawa on Sept. 21, 2022. The Canadian Press/Spencer Colby

The head of the Royal Canadian Navy is admitting to some worries that the military’s ability to operate with only 12 frigates in recent years could be used as a way to justify permanently shrinking the size of Canada’s maritime fleet.

But Vice-Admiral Angus Topshee says some of the navy’s current limitations, which includes an inability to deploy two of the frigates to Europe and the Asia-Pacific region at the same time, can be directly attributed to a lack of warships.