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By GSPIA students: Yerke Abildayeva, Mustapha Ali-Hashi, Zainab Feroz, Robertho Day Isaac, Alexander Marquardt, Maxime Perreault-Varin, Edin Sabotic, Marc L. Tremblay, Mackenzie Waddell-Harris, Ryan Ward, Heidi Zaker
CIPS Working Paper, April 2017

• This report provides a comparative analysis of defence review papers (DRP). The report compares three documents published by the Australian, British, and French governments: Australia’s 2016 Defence White Paper (WP), the UK’s National Security Strategy and Strategic Defence and Security Review, 2015 (NSS & SDSR), and France’s Livre blanc : Défense et sécurité nationale, 2013. Each paper assesses national security strategy and objectives, identifies national security risks, and outlines how they intend to address these risks.
• The report begins by describing the context surrounding the development of the DRPs, and includes details such as the development process, number of documents published, and time horizons. The report then explores key themes identified through content analysis, including national interest categories, values and strategy, alliances, emerging norms, personnel and resources, defence spending, and procurement strategy. The report concludes by acknowledging the different approaches to defence and security, and suggests how insights from this comparative analysis can inform Canadian defence policy.