Canada’s top general defends women in combat, confronts US senator

“After 39 years arsenic a combat arms serviceman and risking my beingness successful operations worldwide, I can’t judge that successful 2024, we inactive person to warrant women’s contributions to their defence and work to their country,” Carignan said during her sheet address. “Women successful combat are not a distraction—questioning their relation is.”

Carignan emphasised the agelong past of women participating successful combat, often without ceremonial recognition, and highlighted the bravery of women successful uniform. Her comments received a lasting ovation astatine the forum, which was attended by defence officials from Western democracies.

The statement implicit women successful combat has resurfaced owed to comments from Pete Hegseth, a nominee for US defence secretary, who has publically opposed integrating men and women successful combat units. If confirmed, Hegseth whitethorn propulsion to rotation backmost the Pentagon’s argumentation of allowing women successful each combat roles.

Carignan, who has served successful Iraq, Afghanistan, Bosnia, and Syria, became Canada’s archetypal pistillate defence main earlier this year. She antecedently led efforts to betterment the Canadian Armed Forces’ civilization pursuing a 2021 intersexual misconduct scandal.

Her remarks travel arsenic Canada faces disapproval for not gathering NATO’s defence spending people of 2% of GDP. While the authorities has committed to reaching this extremity by 2032, Risch claimed the existent program would beryllium met with derision by erstwhile US President Donald Trump.

(With inputs from AP)