Ndhq's Roles During The Cold War

The first pillar embodied an organizational change in the way the command of forces in peace and war are exercised. During the Cold War, the Canadian doctrine was structured around the worst-case scenario of total war. In that case, while national command was always retained in Ottawa, operational command were to be devolved to functional subordinate commands - ultimately to be given over to a NATO or NORAD commander for actual operations. Plans and procedures focused on Alliance structures and the mechanisms for approval and transfer of this operational control. NDHQ's role was seen as controlling national resources and generating follow-on forces. Peacekeeping missions - many of which were long-standing and pre-dated unification - were
This is both because the CDS is the accountable link between the government and its military; and, because the CDS must balance operational demands against the totality of managing the nation's defence. Similarly, NDHQ has become the coordinating mechanism for all the government departments and agencies that become engaged when troops are deployed for operations. This is a complex and involved process that has come to be labelled as force employment. Force employment is a NDHQ-directed activity, with a dedicated command structure created and deployed in support of each mission that reports to CDS through the Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff (DCDS). Similarly, it became clear during the events of 1990-91 that the role of the environmental commands (since re-designated as Maritime, Land, and Air) is primarily the organization, training, certification and sustainment of combat forces. This has since been formally recognized as the force generation function. Another lesson of unification is that while overall organizational unity comes together at various levels, particularly in support services and central command functions, efficiency in force generation is best achieved when unit organization, training and socialization is done in more traditional,
Summary. The prominence of combined operations in the Canadian thinking leads to an emphasis on day-today interoperability with their allies. On one level, interoperability can mean the standardization of equipment, doctrine and procedures, but the most important aspect of interoperability is the human factor, and this means taking advantage of every opportunity to establish personal contacts and shared experience. These opportunities include positions on staff and technical training courses, individual exchange positions with other armed forces, small unit exchanges and formation and unit level participation in major international exercises. Canada hosts allied training activities such as Allied Tactical Flying Training at Goose Bay, Labrador, the British Army Training Establishment (BATUS) at Suffield, Alberta, and the joint Canadian/ United States Navy three-dimensional underwater tracking range located in Nanoose Bay, British Columbia. Equally vital is that Canada continues to invest in overseas training opportunities with NATO and other allies. This kind of training can be expensive and therefore hard to rationalize, but it is the foundation for cooperation in times of need; a foundation that is painfully difficult to build in the throes of a crisis. For Canada, interoperability and the ability to work in the closest harmony with likeminded nations will remain amongst its highest goals and a