Approximately 300 Armed Forces soldiers along with thousands of Canadian Rangers are patrolling Canada’s territories, an area totalling more than 3 million square kilometres, federal documents says.
A June 20 Department of National Defence briefing note counted 5,640 Canadian Rangers in Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut in addition to the roughly 300 soldiers monitoring the region. It did not count the number of military reservists in the territories.
“Strategic competition, climate change, technological advancements and economic interests are making the region strategically vital. That is why the department, alongside its government partners, is focused on defending the Arctic,” the note said as first reported by Blacklock’s Reporter….