Pentagon’s Defence Pause Is Also a Trade Warning for Ottawa

Washington’s move comes amid the linked pressures of continental defence, CUSMA leverage, and a U.S. strategy focused on securing the Western Hemisphere.

U.S. Under Secretary of War Elbridge Colby speaks before the Senate on Capitol Hill in Washington on March 4, 2025. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

Commentary

The Pentagon’s May 18 decision to pause U.S. participation in the Permanent Joint Board on Defence should not be treated as a routine bureaucratic dispute. The board is old, but not irrelevant. It sits inside the history of Canada–U.S. continental defence and carries symbolic weight beyond its meeting schedule.