German Defense Minister Thomas de Maiziere speaks at a press conference Feb. 14 during his visit in Ottawa, Ontario, to announce the location of a new Canadian military support hub at the Koln-Bonn Airport. He met with Canadian Defense Minister Peter MacKay and discussed Afghanistan and an upcoming NATO summit in Chicago. (Michel Comte / AFP)
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OTTAWA — Canadian and German defense ministers on Feb. 14 announced a deal to allow the Canadian military to set up a hub at the Koln-Bonn Airport to expand its global reach.
The new “operational support hub” — along with others to be set up around the world — will allow Canada to deploy troops and supplies to distant hotspots on short notice, said a statement.
Visiting German Defense Minister Thomas de Maiziere told a press conference that he and his Canadian counterpart also discussed missile defense, the future of Afghanistan and the nuclear component of NATO defense capabilities — all topics of an upcoming NATO summit in Chicago in May.
Canadian Defense Minister Peter MacKay also announced that his nation’s submarine fleet should be back in full service in 2013, after local media broadcast images of damage sustained during a crash last year to HMCS Corner Brook’s nose cone containing sonar instruments.
Canada’s submarine fleet has been plagued by problems since they were purchased secondhand from Britain in 1998. One is badly rusted, another caught fire in 2004, and a third has a dented hull and cannot dive deep.
The navy said the Corner Brook hit the ocean floor last June.
