Why Does Canada Have a Navy? Reflecting on the Canadian Leaders at Sea Program

By John Walsh, 12 February 2026

[This is an excerpt of an article in Vol. 21, No. 3 of Canadian Naval Review. For the full article, click on the link below.]

This reflection has its genesis in an exchange during a recent Canadian Leaders at Sea (CLaS) experience aboard HMCS Regina. To open a briefing, Captain (N) Kevin Whiteside posed what seemed like a straightforward question: why does Canada have a navy? At first, the answer appeared self-evident. Canada is bordered by three oceans, and the national motto – a mari usque ad mare – proclaims a country defined by maritime horizons. And yet, like all good questions, this one lingered. To be fair, it was unsettling, not in tone, but in the sobering truth at which it hinted: that many Canadians may no longer know how to answer such a question, or might even be inclined to say that the country no longer needs a navy at all. If either is true, then the society the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) protects may well require a renewed conversation. This conversation would need to re-articulate the values and commitments that sustain not only the institution, but the democracy in whose name it serves. In that spirit, I offer these reflections, joining, in my own way, the larger dialogue that moment on Regina invited.

As a Classics professor, I spend my days immersed in the political and moral thought of earlier societies, studying how power has been exercised, legitimacy earned and civic freedom maintained. Captain Whiteside’s question stayed with me not only as a Canadian, but also as a scholar of the ancient world. What does it mean, in a democratic society, to maintain instruments of national power? How do those instruments remain connected to the people they are meant to serve? And how does naval force contribute to safeguarding not only national territory, but the civic agency and democratic legitimacy of the country itself? The CLaS experience, and especially Captain Whiteside’s challenge during his briefing, helped me begin to answer those questions and to see the navy not just as a strategic tool, but as a living expression of democratic will.

In times of peace – or even the relative peace of today – some may be tempted to view the navy as ornamental, a relic of a bygone age or merely a ceremonial symbol of statehood. But to adopt that view is not only mistaken, it is dangerous. It misjudges the political character of military power in a democracy. For a sovereign, self-governing country such as Canada, naval power is not a vestige, but a vital instrument – one that both defends the state and affirms who belongs to it.

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Latest CNR: Vol. 21 No. 3 (2026)

The second article, “The Strategic Utility of Aircraft Carriers in China’s Ambitions in East Asia,” discusses the rapid growth of China’s aircraft carrier capability and how and where Beijing would likely use them in the case of war. The third article is “Why Does Canada have a Navy? Reflecting on the Canadian Leaders at Sea Program.” In this article, the author addresses a simple question that was asked while he was participating in the CLaS program, and considers what a navy represents and why Canada has one. The final essay, “SS Nerissa: A Tragic Footnote to History,” tells the little-known story of the last voyage of SS Nerissa that was sunk by a U-boat while transporting troops and civilians across the Atlantic in the Second World War.

If that isn’t enough to spark your interest, we have our usual Making Waves commentaries. We have a commentary about hydrography in the Arctic. Sound boring? It’s not. If Canada is getting submarines that are expected to operate in the Arctic, Ottawa needs to act now to map the seafloor there. We have a commentary about the many historic discussions about moving the Coast Guard into the defence department. We have a commentary about the unthinkable – i.e., having naval ships that can act as ‘tripwires’ in the event that the United States decides to blockade Canada. We have an account of a conference in Australia, Canadian interest in East Asia, and preparing for Russia in the Arctic.

And, of course, we have our regular columns. “A View from the West” looks at North Korea’s increasing focus on its navy. “Dollars and Sense” examines the defence-related parts of Budget 2025, and “Warship Developments” updates us on several interesting recent naval decisions.  

In addition to all this great information, we have our usual amazing photos!

Stay tuned. In a few weeks, the issue will be in the mailbox of people who are lucky enough to be subscribers! It’s not too late for you to subscribe. See here for the Table of Contents.

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