• Thanks for stopping by. Logging in to a registered account will remove all generic ads. Please reach out with any questions or concerns.

Gen Vance announces retirement

Remius

Army.ca Fixture
Reaction score
5,670
Points
1,090
No link yet.  Just saw it on the news. 

social media apparently has it.
 
Breaking news is that Gen Vance is retiring.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/vance-retiring-chief-of-the-defence-staff-1.5660106


 
Link: Gen. Jonathan Vance, chief of the defence staff, announces retirement

After five years, Vance is one of the longest serving defence chiefs in the country's history Gen. Jonathan Vance, the country's top military commander, has announced his retirement.

A letter informing the troops of his planned departure was posted on social media Thursday. It says that he's informed the Governor General, the prime minister and the defence minister of his decision "to relinquish command of the Canadian Armed Forces in the months to come."

He said it will be up to the government to select a new chief of the defence staff and decide when the change of command will take place.

Vance has held the post for just over five years — often tumultuous ones — making him one of the longest serving defence chiefs in the country's history.

He was appointed in 2015 by then-prime minister Stephen Harper.

His tenure was marked by a high-profile campaign to stamp out sexual misconduct in the military and the politically-charged case involving former vice-admiral Mark Norman, who was accused of leaking cabinet secrets to a Quebec shipyard and the media.

Within some political and defence circles, Vance was accused of not doing enough to stand up for Norman, his former vice-chief of the defence staff, in the face of the allegations. The criminal case against Norman was stayed after the defence dug up evidence that the RCMP and the Crown had not considered.

Throughout the controversies, Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan said repeatedly that he had full confidence in Vance, who was also assigned the thorny task of implementing the Liberal government's defence policy.

Vance has been touted as a possible candidate to head NATO's Military Council, a position that has not been held by a Canadian for more than 15 years.

The chairman's post is expected to become vacant next year and the NATO alliance has been actively canvassing nations with an interest in leading the advisory body.

But the Liberal government last week formally refused to put Vance's name forward, defence sources told CBC News.

In his letter to the troops, Vance praised them and described them as "the inspiration for my life," saying he had given them his all.

He told Canadian Forces members that they are "more important to the success of this nation than ‎most will ever know, and I am so very proud to be counted among your ranks."

A member of the army for 39 years, Vance did two tours commanding the Canadian task force in Kandahar before going on to a series of high-profile posts, including head of the military's overseas command and deputy commander of NATO's Allied Joint Force Command Naples in 2014.
 
There goes the pool on Rouleau being the next CDS, unless the PM wants to keep that revolving door going and setting a new record for shortest stay in the position...
 
Well, LGen Eyre was 66? days in the chair as CMP, so there is ample recent precedence.

There's also a CANFORGEN just out on the street naming CPO1 Gregoire as the CAF Chief.
 
PuckChaser said:
There goes the pool on Rouleau being the next CDS, unless the PM wants to keep that revolving door going and setting a new record for shortest stay in the position...

A/CDS Gen (WSE) Rouleau?  If he does a good job for the PM it becomes substantive. Screw it up and he's  back to VCDS.
 
I am not going to speculate, other than to note that nothing very much will surprise me.

A bit of a quick search found that General Boyle went from BGen to CDS in two-and-a-half years, and then resigned after about ten months in the chair. Admiral Anderson also had a short run as CDS.
 
Haggis said:
A/CDS Gen (WSE) Rouleau?  If he does a good job for the PM it becomes substantive. Screw it up and he's  back to VCDS.

To be honest I don't see Rouleau wanting the job right now. Cuts are coming. Deep cuts are coming. Probably the reason why Vance pulled pin, just couldn't handle being the face of of government policy anymore after watching the Cabinet throw the public service under the bus. Something had to happen here for him to announce retirement this late in the posting season...

Rouleau's probably content waiting 2-3 years for either a new PM or new party in power.

That being said, will the current Comd RCAF become the front runner? He's been Comd RCAF for 2 years already, the other L1s have only been in position for a year. Comd CJOC and VCDS are new in their jobs. CMP is in the same boat as the L1 Comds. Most of the other LGen/VAdms are going to new OUTCAN positions like NATO or NORAD so it really cuts down the list of available candidates.
 
Old Sweat said:
A bit of a quick search found that General Boyle went from BGen to CDS in two-and-a-half years, and then resigned after about ten months in the chair. Admiral Anderson also had a short run as CDS.

VAdm Murray, who succeeded Gen Boyle was A/CDS for just over 11 months.
 
Old Sweat said:
A bit of a quick search found that General Boyle went from BGen to CDS in two-and-a-half years, and then resigned after about ten months in the chair. Admiral Anderson also had a short run as CDS.

Haggis said:
VAdm Murray, who succeeded Gen Boyle was A/CDS for just over 11 months.

I seem to recall that in those days, being CDS was much like being Base Duty Cpl for me...and it very well could have been Cpl CDS me by default if I'd been posted in Ottawa in those days since nobody in their right minds wanted the job.

MM
 
PuckChaser said:
To be honest I don't see Rouleau wanting the job right now. Cuts are coming. Deep cuts are coming. Probably the reason why Vance pulled pin, just couldn't handle being the face of of government policy anymore after watching the Cabinet throw the public service under the bus. Something had to happen here for him to announce retirement this late in the posting season...

Rouleau's probably content waiting 2-3 years for either a new PM or new party in power.

That being said, will the current Comd RCAF become the front runner? He's been Comd RCAF for 2 years already, the other L1s have only been in position for a year. Comd CJOC and VCDS are new in their jobs. CMP is in the same boat as the L1 Comds. Most of the other LGen/VAdms are going to new OUTCAN positions like NATO or NORAD so it really cuts down the list of available candidates.

Remember, selection isn’t limited just to LGens.  Technically any General Officer could be appointed.

Don’t know for sure...could be amongst the following four or five, IMO.

LGen Mike Rouleau - VCDS
LGen Wayne Eyre - Comd CA
LGen Al Meinzinger - Comd RCAF
MGen Jennie Carignan - Comd NATO Mission Iraq
MGen Frances Allen - Deputy VCDS

Not sure we’ll formally hear about who’s being considered.

Regards
G2G
 
Good2Golf said:
MGen Jennie Carignan - Comd NATO Mission Iraq

A female CDS could be the PM's way to show he has "learned" from the JWR/Philpot debacle.
 
Haggis said:
A female CDS could be the PM's way to show he has "learned" from the JWR/Philpot debacle.

I'm sure some people would eat that up, but I wouldn't say he's learned until he actually listens to her... you think if she doesn't play nice he'll pull her into his office and try to shout her down like he did with Celina Caesar-Chavannes?
 
ballz said:
I'm sure some people would eat that up, but I wouldn't say he's learned until he actually listens to her... you think if she doesn't play nice he'll pull her into his office and try to shout her down like he did with Celina Caesar-Chavannes?
The PM says that he and Caesar-Chavannes saw things differently. I doubt shouting down "CDS" Carignan would be well received.
 
General Vance was probably fed up with what he was seeing out of the PMO and pulled pin.
 
I had read in an article today that our government refused nominating Vance for some big NATO position recently.
 
Jarnhamar said:
General Vance was probably fed up with what he was seeing out of the PMO and pulled pin.

Or with all the COVID going around, he decided that after 39 years in the army, he and his wife are going to retire to someplace less hectic than Ottawa.

 
Halifax Tar said:
I had read in an article today that our government refused nominating Vance for some big NATO position recently.
That was part of the CBC article posted above.  The Liberal government refused to put his name forward for the position of Chairman of the NATO Military Committee.  That post was last held by a Canadian when Gen Ray Henault was in the chair.

Jarnhamar said:
General Vance was probably fed up with what he was seeing out of the PMO and pulled pin.
By refusing to nominate him for the NMC, the PMO clearly wanted him gone and out of uniform.  In that case, his departure may not have been entirely voluntary.
 
Haggis said:
A female CDS could be the PM's way to show he has "learned" from the JWR/Philpot debacle.

There’s a PMJT precedent for a similar ‘deep dip’ a rank farther down that normal- Brenda Lucki.
 
Back
Top