Canada in talks with the EU to reduce US defense reliance: AP source

TORONTO — Canada is in discussions with the European Union to join an EU drive to break its security dependency on the United States, with a focus on buying more defense equipment, including fighter jets, in Europe, a senior Canadian government official confirmed Wednesday. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter, said the plan includes building fighter jets in Canada. In Canada, where U.S. President Donald Trump has launched a trade war and has threatened economic coercion to make it the 51st American state, Defense Minister Bill Blair has been tasked by Prime Minister Mark Carney to review the purchase of America’s F-35 fighter jets to see if there are other options “given the changing environment,” a defense spokesman said on the weekend. On Wednesday, the EU’s executive branch unveiled its “Readiness 2030” security strategy, urging member states to buy much of their military equipment in Europe, working mostly with European suppliers — in some cases with EU help to cut prices and speed up orders.