The chair of the military committee is the senior spokesperson for the 32-nation organization. The new CMC will be Germany's Carsten Breuer.

NATO has selected a German general over Canada’s defence chief for the alliance’s top military role.

Canada’s Chief of the Defence Staff, Gen. Jennie Carignan, and Germany’s defence chief, Gen. Carsten Breuer were both being considered for the position of chair of NATO’s military committee or CMC. Defence chiefs of the alliance’s nations held a secret vote Saturday and selected Breuer.

The CMC election came as NATO has been trying to deal with the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict and rapid changes in warfare, including widespread use of drones. It also came at a time when U.S. President Donald Trump has continually threatened to reduce U.S. support for the alliance.

The chair of the military committee is the senior spokesperson for the 32-nation NATO and the main advisor to its secretary general.

Carignan issued a statement Saturday congratulating Breuer, adding it had been an honour to be a candidate for the CMC job. “There is important work ahead for our alliance, and I know General Breuer will bring strong leadership to his role,” Carignan said.

Both Carignan and Breuer have impressive military records with multiple deployments.

Breuer has NATO headquarters experience having served as the Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Transformation Representative in Europe. Breuer is also seen as being instrumental in pushing Germany’s historic modernization and rearmament program as well as being a leading voice for raising support for NATO’s strategy following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Carignan is credited with being a significant force behind the reforms aimed at culture change in the Canadian Forces. She was named chief of the defence staff in the summer of 2024, becoming the first woman to take on that role.

In May, Defence Minister David McGuinty announced he was putting Carignan’s name forward for the top NATO post. The last time a Canadian held the position was between 2005-2008, when Gen. Ray Henault served as CMC. McGuinty noted at the time that Canada’s nomination reflected the country’s enduring commitment to NATO and to strengthening collective defence and trans-Atlantic security.

McGuinty told reporters on Sept. 18 that Carignan had worked hard on her campaign to convince her fellow generals to vote for her and that she “reached out to her counterparts in all NATO alliance member countries. It would be historical and groundbreaking, the first woman Chief of Defence to chair such a committee.”

McGuinty said he also supported Carignan’s campaign by writing letters to “different ministers to suggest that she would be a fine candidate.”

The news outlet Politico reported Saturday that Breuer made multiple trips to NATO capitals to meet with fellow military leaders and actively make a case that he be elected as CMC. Recent stops included Albania, North Macedonia, the U.S., Slovenia, Latvia and Estonia — all in the past two months, according to Politico.

The CMC-elect is expected to take office in the summer of 2027 for a three-year term. Breuer will replace Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone of Italy.

Retired Canadian Forces Col. Brett Boudreau, who served on Henault’s staff when he was CMC, posted on X that the appeal to NATO military chiefs to elect a woman to the position because that would be a first-time event was a profound and strategic miscalculation.

“NATO wants more Canada, but needs more Germany,” Boudreau wrote. “The German (general) has been a visionary officer as military head, publicly leading and actively communicating the charge for the swift modernization and recapitalization of their armed services. The media-shy Canadian CDS was the accidental beneficiary of a change of government that turned a firehose of $$$ at Defence, forcing change on an institution increasingly more closed and opaque than open and transparent.”

David Pugliese is an award-winning journalist covering Canadian Forces and military issues in Canada. To support his work, including exclusive content for subscribers only, sign up here: ottawacitizen.com/subscribe