Australia said on Monday it will sell advanced radar technology capable of detecting long-range missiles to Canada under a A$2.5 billion ($1.75 billion) agreement, the country’s largest-ever defence export deal. The agreement is Australia’s first overseas sale of the radar, known as Over-the-Horizon Radar (OTHR) technology, and will support Canada’s surveillance of the Arctic region.
“Today’s agreement marks a significant milestone in Australian defence trade and lays the foundation for deeper and mutually beneficial defence industry collaboration with Canada,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a statement. Canada’s Arctic region represents about 40% of its total landmass, though it is sparsely populated and has little infrastructure. Much of Russia’s Arctic area, which is about a fifth of its landmass, faces Canada and the U.S. state of Alaska.
Strengthening Arctic Defence
“Canada is reinforcing Arctic security through the Arctic Over-the-Horizon Radar project,” said Stephen Fuhr, Canada’s secretary of state for defence procurement. “This project is part of a broader effort to build an integrated Arctic surveillance and communications network that will strengthen Canada’s ability to monitor, understand and respond to activity in the Arctic.” Australia’s Jindalee Operational Radar Network can detect and track aircraft, ships and missiles up to 3,000 km (1,864 miles) away.
According to Canada’s national broadcaster CBC, the agreement was finalised late Sunday when Fuhr signed the deal with Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles in Canberra, alongside a separate industrial benefits agreement covering Canadian investment, since the system is foreign-manufactured.
The radar’s transmitting and receiving stations will be located in southern Ontario’s Kawartha Lakes region, with the system expected to be operational by 2029, CBC reported.
The deal forms the first of two planned Arctic radar units, with a second, the Polar Over-the-Horizon Radar, to be situated deeper in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago at a location yet to be disclosed.
A Broader Defence Partnership
The deal to share the technology with Canada will create around 300 jobs in Australia and is the first stage of a broader collaboration between the two countries on the radar, Australia said.
Australia’s Defence Minister noted the agreement also supports the Five Eyes intelligence partnership between the two nations, according to Australia’s Department of Defence. The radar system is also expected to contribute to the modernisation of NORAD, the joint U.S.-Canada aerospace defence command, as melting Arctic ice and rising Russian military activity have heightened the region’s strategic significance.
(with input from Reuters)
