Article content

WASHINGTON — The U.S. military is preparing to ask that new sensors be installed in the Canadian Arctic that would be able to track different types of incoming missiles.

A senior defence official said Tuesday the request is being made to U.S. policy leaders — as well as the Canadian government. He said it’s too early in the process to set a target date.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or U.S. military to ask Canada to install better missile sensors in Arctic: senior defence official Back to video

“I don’t think we have a timetable just yet,” said Admiral William Gortney, the head of the Canada-U.S. Norad program and of Northern Command — the Colorado-based body with tracking responsibility for the U.S. missile-defence program.

“We’re just now bringing it up through our policy leaders as well as with the Canadian government.”

He told a news conference at the Pentagon that it’s nearly time to replace the aging sensors in the Canada-U.S. North Warning System, along the old Arctic distant early warning line, the Cold War-era DEW Line.