At the NATO Summit in Ankara, significant support was announced for a new global defence financing initiative led by Canada. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced that nine countries have committed to joining the Defence, Security and Resilience Bank (DSRB).
The countries listed were Albania, Belgium, Greece, Latvia, Luxembourg, Romania, Türkiye and Ukraine. Carney stated that these countries will play a role in shaping the bank's initial policies and operations.
The DSRB aims to provide up to £100 billion (US$134 billion) in low-cost financing to strengthen the defence capabilities of allied countries. The Canadian government took on the promotion of the bank this year and had planned to announce around 10 national supporters at the NATO summit.
Canada emphasizes leadership
Prime Minister Carney emphasized in his statement that they are leading the effort to build the foundations of common security. Carney said:
The Defence, Security and Resilience Bank will unlock investments, strengthen our defence industrial base, and ensure that Canada and our allies have the capacity to collectively meet the challenges of a more dangerous and divided world.
Canada added that partner countries are invited to put the plans through their internal approval processes, and that the DSRB is targeted to become operational in 2027.
Ukraine invasion cited as justification
The statement noted that Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine has revealed the need for allies to rapidly produce defence capabilities on a large scale. This was highlighted as the main rationale behind the new financing mechanism.
The DSRB's current list of supporters includes no G7 country other than Canada. However, Canadian Finance Minister Anita Anand stated on the margins of the NATO Summit that the bank is open to new members.
The bank plans to aim for a triple-A credit rating, providing low-interest loans for defence projects and offering credit guarantees to private banks. Canada and Luxembourg are known to have previously announced their support for the bank.
