Guest Essay: Defence industry boom can be a dividend for Canada-Japan ties

Next month, Canadian warships will arrive in the Indo-Pacific, signalling Ottawa’s ambition to deepen military ties with regional allies, particularly Japan.

The deployment includes port calls in Japan and joint exercises in the region. It follows a recent naval deployment from late May to mid-June 2026 to conduct surveillance activities against North Korean-flagged vessels suspected of violating UN Security Council resolutions. A second deployment is expected later in the fall.

These repeated visits are not simply about optics. They mark a rapidly growing defence relationship between Ottawa and Tokyo.

Indeed, last month, Canadian Minister of National Defence, David J. McGuinty, completed a week-long visit to Japan aimed at expanding defence industry collaboration and strengthening the bilateral trade relationship. McGuinty was accompanied by a significant presence of Canadian defence and aerospace firms.  

The more important story, though, is not the ship movements or the ministerial handshakes that accompany them. It is what sits underneath: Canada and Japan are each trying to reduce dependence on a single defence-industrial partner, and each has concluded the other is the most credible alternative on offer.

Canada and Japan are natural allies and strategic partners, both looking to diversify and expand collaboration with likeminded defence partners.

They are also united by shared concerns about growing instability in the Indo-Pacific. Rising fears around an aggressive China and North Korea’s growing nuclear capabilities have highlighted the need for deeper cooperation.

Over the last few months, the relationship has moved beyond just close ties toward a genuine strategic partnership, particularly on issues of security and defence.

That shift matters more than the language used to describe it. Strategic partnerships without institutional weight are common in diplomacy (e.g. Canada’s strategic partnership with China); what distinguishes this one is that it now carries an actual technology-transfer and industrial architecture behind it.

This new trajectory for the relationship was formalised in March 2026, when Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi signed the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (‘CSP’). The CSP set out a range of sectors for deeper cooperation, including security and defence, economic security, energy, Arctic cooperation, and cultural exchange. Its real significance is not the list, though, but the level at which it was signed: both governments chose to manage this relationship at the head-of-government level rather than leave it to trade officials.

The meeting in June between Canadian Defence Minister David McGuinty and Japanese Minister of Defense Shinjirō Koizumi, is the latest example of this new relationship in action. Alongside the ministerial visit, Canada sent a trade delegation to Japan consisting of almost 300 people from 175 Canadian companies, including a number of defence and security businesses. The delegation was clearly a success, with Canadian companies signing CAD $1.7 billion in deals during the mission.

The timing for this relationship growth also presents an opportunity for Canada. Japan has been steadily undertaking significant reforms to its defence export policies. In April 2026, the Japanese cabinet approved the relaxation of the Three Principles on Transfer of Defense Equipment and Technology, including the removal of limitations on the export of lethal defence equipment.

Canada and Japan already have a framework in place for the transfer of equipment and technology, with the Equipment and Technology Transfer Agreement which entered into force in June 2026.

Together, these changes give the two countries the policy basis for far deeper cooperation. With increased defence equipment cooperation, these two partners can strengthen deterrence, build industrial resilience, and create opportunities for advanced manufacturing jobs.

Canada has been looking to diversify its defence sector considering growing unpredictability from its primary defence export partner, the United States. The Defence Industrial Strategy published in February 2026 reiterated this policy and highlighted that Canada would seek new opportunities with partners in the Indo-Pacific, including Japan.

Finally, Canada has also now announced it has joined as an observer in the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP), the next-generation fighter aircraft initiative jointly pursued by Japan, the United Kingdom, and Italy. This development marks the first expansion of the programme beyond the three original members.

As the relationship between Canada and Japan enters this new phase, both countries can sense significant opportunity from closer cooperation, and both are aware of the growing global instability and regional risks. Amid this rising instability Canada and Japan are reliable partners, with shared values and aligned strategic interests. The task for Canada and Japan will be to turn the agreements and frameworks in place into concrete action which can secure their continued security.

Jonathan Berkshire Miller is MIGS’ senior fellow on the Indo-Pacific.