New Military Hotline Directly Links Top Brass To U.S.

After the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, there was criticism that senior Canadian officials, including then-prime minister Jean Chretien, were out of the communications loop during the initial stages of the terrorist strike. The Citizen obtained documents on the red switch network under the access to information law, but Defence Department officials censored almost all details. They claimed releasing the material would be "injurious" to the defence of Canada, its international relations, as well as the detection of subversive or hostile activities. The newspaper, however, found the details of the supposedly secret network, including its cost to taxpayers, on the department's own public webpage. Details of a similar system that would allow U.S. President George W. Bush to communicate with his top level commanders was also on a Pentagon webpage. http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/story.html?id=e6160929-3c6c-4c80-b846-254964c5643b&k=2482

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