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The Danish navy cancelled sending one its frigates to Halifax after the federal government indicated it couldn’t be involved with the visit since the vessel was of the type that could be considered in the competition for a new Canadian warship.

The Royal Canadian Navy and federal officials were worried about the appearance of a conflict of interest surrounding the visit of the Danish warship HDMS Peter Willemoes. A Danish firm plans to submit the same ship design in its bid for the $26-billion Canadian Surface Combatant (CSC) program.

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The concerns raised by the Canadian government, which led to the cancellation of the Nov. 14-15 port visit, are in contrast to its reaction to the news that Irving Shipbuilding, which will play a key role in selecting the winning bid for the new surface combatants, was itself partnered with a British firm submitting a bid on that program.

But Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan and government officials say they have no issues with that arrangement between BAE, a British company, and Irving.