Canada Doubles Down at RIMPAC 2025 Amid US Freeriding Accusations
In a move that carries as much political weight as it does military significance, Canada is deploying two frigates and a submarine to the world's largest multinational naval exercise this week. The deployment of HMCS Ottawa, HMCS Regina, and submarine HMCS Corner Brook to the Rim of the Pacific Exercise — better known as RIMPAC — is being closely watched by analysts and foreign policy observers alike. At its core, this is Canada's most visible and pointed response yet to repeated accusations from the Trump administration that Ottawa has long been "freeriding" on American military might.
RIMPAC 2025, which runs through July 31, is expected to draw more than 25,000 military personnel from 31 participating nations, including Australia, Japan, and South Korea. Canada's three-vessel commitment places it among the more substantial contributors to the exercise and sends an unmistakable signal: Ottawa is serious about its role in Indo-Pacific security, and it is not about to let Washington's criticism go unanswered.
What Is RIMPAC and Why Does It Matter?
The Rim of the Pacific Exercise is a biennial multinational naval exercise hosted by the United States Navy and held primarily in and around the Hawaiian Islands. First launched in 1971, it has grown into the largest international maritime warfare exercise in the world, covering everything from anti-submarine warfare and live-fire gunnery to humanitarian assistance and disaster relief scenarios.
Participation in RIMPAC is considered a meaningful expression of a nation's alignment with US-led security architecture in the Pacific. For Canada, showing up with significant naval assets is not merely a matter of military tradition — it is an active diplomatic statement in a period of considerable strain between Ottawa and Washington.
The Freeriding Accusation: What Trump Has Said
The charge of freeriding has been a recurring theme in the Trump administration's dealings with NATO allies and close partners like Canada. The argument, stated bluntly and repeatedly by President Trump and senior officials, is that countries such as Canada have for decades benefited from the umbrella of American military power without spending proportionally on their own defence. Canada's defence spending has historically hovered well below the NATO benchmark of two percent of GDP, a fact that US officials have not been shy about highlighting.
For Washington, the freeriding narrative serves multiple purposes: it pressures allies to increase defence budgets, it resonates with a domestic audience skeptical of multilateral commitments, and it gives the administration leverage in trade and diplomatic negotiations. For Canada, the accusation stings particularly hard given the deep economic and security integration between the two countries — integration that Ottawa argues already represents a substantial contribution to shared continental defence.
Canada's Indo-Pacific Strategy and the RIMPAC Signal
Canada released its Indo-Pacific Strategy in late 2022, committing additional resources and attention to a region that had previously sat at the periphery of Canadian foreign and defence policy. That strategy explicitly recognised the growing strategic importance of the Pacific and flagged China's increasingly assertive behaviour as a major concern. RIMPAC participation is one of the clearest ways Canada can operationalise that strategy in a visible, internationally recognised forum.
Analysts note that the deployment of a submarine alongside the two frigates adds particular significance. Submarines are high-value, strategically sensitive assets, and bringing HMCS Corner Brook into the exercise signals that Canada is prepared to contribute capabilities — not just presence — to allied maritime operations in the region. Anti-submarine warfare is one of the most demanding and strategically critical competencies exercised at RIMPAC, and Canada's involvement in that domain sends a message about depth of commitment.
How Allies and Observers Are Reading the Move
Defence analysts across Canada, the United States, and the wider Indo-Pacific have been watching Ottawa's posture with interest. The consensus among observers is that Canada's RIMPAC deployment serves at least three distinct functions simultaneously.
- A diplomatic rebuttal: By showing up in force at a US-hosted exercise, Canada is demonstrating that it is a capable and willing partner, not a passive beneficiary of American security guarantees.
- A signal to the region: Participation alongside Japan, Australia, South Korea, and other Indo-Pacific stakeholders reinforces Canada's claim to being a genuine player in the region's emerging security architecture.
- A domestic message: For a Canadian public increasingly aware of pressure from Washington, a visible military deployment provides the government with a tangible symbol of national resolve and sovereign confidence.
Canada's Defence Spending Trajectory
Beyond RIMPAC, Canada has been working to address the underlying substance of the freeriding charge. The Canadian government has signalled plans to increase defence spending toward the two-percent-of-GDP NATO target, a commitment accelerated in part by the changed security environment following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and by sustained pressure from Washington. While critics at home debate the pace and composition of that increase, the direction of travel is clear.
Military procurements are also moving forward, including the long-running effort to replace Canada's aging CF-18 fighter jets with F-35s and ongoing investment in Arctic surveillance and sovereignty capabilities. These are not purely symbolic gestures — they represent genuine capability development that will matter to allies and adversaries alike in the coming decade.
The Bigger Picture: Canada-US Relations Under Strain
Canada's RIMPAC deployment does not exist in a vacuum. It comes at a moment when the bilateral relationship between Ottawa and Washington is navigating significant turbulence, with trade disputes, tariff threats, and pointed rhetoric from the Trump administration creating an unusually tense atmosphere between two countries that share the world's longest undefended border and one of the deepest economic partnerships on earth.
In that context, actions speak louder than diplomatic communiqués. Sending warships and a submarine to join 31 nations in the Pacific is Canada's way of saying — in the language that the Trump administration appears to respect most — that Ottawa is putting skin in the game. Whether that message lands in Washington the way Ottawa intends remains to be seen, but the deployment ensures that freeriding, at least for this exercise, is not a charge that will go without an answer.
Looking Ahead
As RIMPAC 2025 unfolds through the end of July, Canada's naval contingent will participate in a wide range of live exercises designed to sharpen interoperability among allied forces. The practical military value of that training is real. But for now, the strategic symbolism of Canada's presence at the world's largest naval exercise may carry just as much weight as anything that happens on the water.