National Defense Minister Anita Anand insisted that Canada is ready to deal with evolving global threats, after the missile explosions in Poland raised concerns about the Russian war in Ukraine spilling over into a NATO country, the tense interaction between the Prime Minister and the Chinese President caught on video, and North Korea testing a ballistic missile.

In an interview on CTV with Joyce Napier, aired on Sunday, Anand said: "We need to be able to contribute to our multilateral alliances in NATO and in bilateral support for Ukraine, while ensuring our presence in supporting peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region, and that is exactly what we are doing."

All this comes as defense leaders from democracies around the world gather in Halifax this weekend.

Also on Saturday, Anand held a bilateral meeting with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to reaffirm support for Ukraine, and discuss upgrades to North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), among other topics.

Anand also told CTV's Question Period that Canada continues to work with its allies, and that it will remain diligent and prudent as much as possible when making decisions, especially when it comes to incidents like the missile strikes in Poland this week that resulted in two deaths.

Anand added: "I was of course extremely concerned, and I remain concerned, as I have been since February 24, when Russia illegally and unjustifiably invaded a sovereign democratic country. We will continue to stand with Ukraine in the short and long term, and that is why Canada has offered its support in investigating these two missiles that struck Poland."

Meanwhile, Canada’s relations with China took center stage this week when a video of Chinese President Xi Jinping confronting Trudeau circulated, prompting much speculation about the state of the relationship. The tense talks, which opposition parties said Trudeau mishandled, came shortly before the federal government was set to release the long-awaited Indo-Pacific strategy expected by the end of the month.