[CaptainCrunch]

https://www.nationalnewswatch.com/20.../#.ZCw7nvbMJD-

OTTAWA — A battle is brewing between Canadian defence officials and federal decision-makers as the Trudeau government looks for ways to save billions of dollars over the next few years.
Experts say last week's budget and the delays in a planned update to the defence policy are signs of this pending conflict, with ramifications for Canada's military and its international reputation.
The budget contains virtually no new defence funding, but does include several cost-cutting measures, notably an order for departments and agencies to identify ways to cut spending by three per cent over the next few years.
And while the government says the Canadian Armed Forces will be excluded from such cuts, it remains unclear the degree to which the exemption will extend to the Department of National Defence, which controls the military's budget.
"Regarding the reduction in eligible spending by departments and agencies, as indicated in Budget 2023, the reduction will not impact the Canadian Armed Forces," Finance Department spokeswoman Marie-France Faucher said in an

That has left experts confused, given how intertwined the two organizations are, with much of the work of the Defence Department directly impacting military management, operations and procurement.
"I'm trying to think of what DND spending would be unrelated to the CAF," said David Perry, president of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute think tank and one of Canada's foremost authorities on military spending.
That confusion has been magnified by uncertainty around the Liberal government's plan to upgrade its defence policy, which was first released in 2017 and promised tens of billions in new funding for the military.

Retired lieutenant-general Guy Thibault, head of the Conference of Defence Associations Institute think tank, said it suggests the Liberal government has different priorities — and a willingness to accept the risks of not doing more for the military.
"It is obvious in the aftermath of (U.S. President Joe Biden's) visit and the messaging in this budget that the prime minister, deputy prime minister or cabinet are not convinced that more investments in defence will result in greater influence with the U.S. or allies," he said.
"And obviously they do not truly believe in the threats we are facing. This is simply a continuation of historical government practice of accepting the risk and spending the least amount on defence as they can possibly get away with."

And of course, NO SOUP FOR YOU!

https://nationalpost.com/news/nation...3-a1cd355136d3

The Canadian soldiers are in Poland to train Ukrainian military personnel but since Canada did not send military cooks on the mission, the troops were told to eat at local restaurants.

But there is a massive backlog with the Canadian Forces reimbursing the soldiers for those costs, sending some of them thousands of dollars into debt. Their families contacted this newspaper to complain about the situation they say is causing financial stress at home.

After this newspaper inquired about the situation, the Canadian Forces confirmed Monday that there are problems with payments of per diems and the reimbursement of other expenses. The Canadian Forces is now promising to speed up the process.

“We apologize to the members and their families for the distress this has caused, and thank them for their patience,” said Capt. Nicolas Plourde-Fleury, spokesman for Canadian Joint Operations Command (CJOC). “We want them to know we have implemented measures to better support them moving forward.”