3. Is of the view that enhancing strategic autonomy in security affairs entails, for the EU, the capacity to agree upon common political objectives and strategic guidelines, to establish strategic partnerships with relevant international organisations, including NATO, and States to collect adequate information and generate joint analyses and assessments, to harness and, where necessary, pool financial, civilian and military resources, to plan and run effective crisis management operations across the extended range of the Petersberg-ty ...[+++]pe missions, and to frame and implement a common defence policy, laying the first tangible foundations on which to build common defence;

(Return tabled) Question No. 864 Ms. Kirsty Duncan: With respect to mental health and suicide in the Canadian Forces (CF), including regular forces, reservists and veterans, as well as among Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) veterans: (a) what does history and research show from the First World War (WWI) and the Second World War (WWII), regarding the percentage of Canadian veterans who suffered some degree of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and how it might have impacted their ability to (i) hold down jobs, (ii) maintain relationships, (iii) overcome substance abuse, (iv) maintain their will to live; (b) how are suicides tracke ...[+++]d for CF regular forces, reservists and veterans, including RCMP veterans, (i) has the tracking method changed over time (from 2000 onwards) for any of these groups, including name changes (e.g., suicide versus sudden death) and, if so, how, why and when, (ii) how are suicides tracked among veterans who may not be known to Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC) and who may be under other types of care (e.g., in hospitals) or in homeless shelters, prisons, etc.; (c) what are the identified gaps in tracking for each of the identified groups and, for each gap, what action items (i) are planned (including predicted start and completion dates, and necessary funding), (ii) are being implemented (including predicted completion date and necessary funding), (iii) have been completed to address the problem; (d) how are suicides investigated for each identified group today and, for each group, for the years 1990 to the present (or years available), (i) what percentage of victims were known to either the Department of National Defense (DND) or VAC prior to the suicide, or to the medical, social-aid or prison system, (ii) what percentage had attempted suicide before, (iii) what percentage suffered from an identified Operational Stress Injury (OSI), including PTSD, anxiety, depression or substance abuse, (iv) what percentage suffered from acquired brain ...

44. Stresses that EU military and civilian personnel will increasingly be operating side by side and that they are to a large extent exposed to the same threats, such as improvised explosive devices, and in need of comparable capabilities in areas such as strategic and tactical transportation, logistical support, communication, intelligence gathering and evaluation systems, medical support, security and force protection, use of spa ...[+++]ce capabilities, and unmanned vehicles;

44. Stresses that EU military and civilian personnel will increasingly be operating side by side and that they are to a large extent exposed to the same threats, such as improvised explosive devices, and in need of comparable capabilities in areas such as strategic and tactical transportation, logistical support, communication, intelligence gathering and evaluation systems, medical support, security and force protection, use of spa ...[+++]ce capabilities, and unmanned vehicles;

The second sentence also aggravates them because, in their view, it is an incomplete description of the role they played and neglects to mention attacks on many strategic military installations, as well as important tactical support to D-Day preparations, assault and subsequent break-out operations. They also think the last sentence is an inaccurate assessment of the effect and value of the strategic bombing campaign.

In addition to a policy framework and adequate sustained funding, CADSI believes there's a third crucial ingredient to successful defence procurement, and that is a front-end political and interdepartmental decision-making mechanism that engages the government, the military, and industry in aligning the acquisition of military equipment with strategic government objectives for industry, domestic economic innovation, and trade competitiveness in defined areas of national interest.