Is Canada vulnerable to foreign interference?

Is Canada especially vulnerable to foreign interference? While the inquiry will focus on claims of election interference by China, Russia, India "And other foreign actors", experts say the problem of foreign meddling in Canada is much more complex and widespread. Solving it, they say, demands a restructuring of the political and social DNA of the country, which has long-failed to prioritise matters of national security. "Generally speaking, we have been neglecting national security, intelligence, law enforcement, defence, and so on," Thomas Juneau, a political analyst and professor at the University of Ottawa, told the BBC. While it is tough to determine whether Canada is uniquely vulnerable compared to its allies, Mr Juneau argued that other countries have done a far better job in addressing the issue. The source of Canada's security complacency, argued Richard Fadden, a former csis director and national security advisor to two prime ministers, is that Canada has lived in relative safety, largely protected from foreign threats by its geography: the US to the south, and surrounded by three oceans. Canada's allies - like the US and Australia - have been quicker to adopt certain tools to help catch bad actors, such as establishing a registry of foreign agents and criminalising acts that can be classified as interference. Mr Fadden said the events of 2023 represented a seismic shift in Canada's psyche, forcing the country to finally confront the issue of foreign interference. The inquiry, led by Quebec appellate judge Marie-Josée Hogue, will be conducted in two phases, ending with a final report in December that will include recommendations on what Canada can do to deter future interference.