Eyes South

Canada's army, like the R.C.A.F., is in the midst of a historic conversion. Always British-oriented, it is now turning toward the U.S. for a new array of weapons. To start, Canada will buy the U.S. Lacrosse, a highly mobile artillery rocket with pinpoint accuracy, send the first units to Canadian NATO forces in Germany. The army also likes the U.S. Hawk ground-to-air missile for defense against low-flying planes, wants other U.S. missiles for antitank weapons. Eventually, Canada hopes to get nuclear warheads, both for the Lacrosse missile and for the Bomarc interceptor recently adopted by the R.C.A.F.

News of the shift toward the U.S. came clear to Canadians last week, caused more of a stir than the R.C.A.F.'s similar decision (TIME, Oct. 6). Some critics of the new policy complained that Canada is becoming too dependent on the U.S. for military muscle. But there was really no alternative; the U.S. has what Canada need's. Said a Canadian colonel: "Canada will have an army again."

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