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U.S. government procurement records show that Washington has ordered nearly $10-million in armoured vehicles for ICE from Brampton, Ont.-based defence contractor Roshel.CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP/Getty Images
The Canadian company building armoured vehicles for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is doing so in the United States – which likely places the products out of the reach of Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister.
Human-rights advocates are expressing concern over the prospect of the company equipping an American agency known for its aggressive enforcement tactics under the Trump administration’s mass-deportation campaign. NDP MP Jenny Kwan had said that Canada should block the sale of these vehicles.
U.S. government procurement records show that Washington has ordered nearly $10-million in armoured vehicles from defence contractor Roshel, based in Brampton, Ont. They are earmarked for ICE, according to the Federal Procurement Data System, and the purchase was approved by the U.S. government Nov. 28.
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand, asked about the contract earlier this week, said little except that she had not received any questions or requests regarding the transaction. The Foreign Affairs Minister is the minister responsible in Canada for regulating arms exports.
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Roman Shimonov, the CEO of Roshel, has declined to discuss the contract.
But he told The Globe and Mail Thursday, in response to a question, that products destined for the U.S. market are built in the U.S. and that vehicles in the ICE order were assembled there as well.
Mr. Shimonov would not discuss the matter further but Roshel in late 2024 publicly announced that it opened its first U.S.-based production facility in Shelby Township, Mich.
“Our Michigan facility mirrors the advanced capabilities of our Canadian operations,” Roshel said in a statement last year. It integrates key manufacturing processes – including design, development, metal fabrication, welding, painting, mechanical assembly, and electrical assembly – all under one roof.”
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Ottawa does not release public statistics on the export of military equipment or weapons to the United States, nor does it require export permits for the vast majority of defence gear sold to U.S. buyers. That’s because of the traditionally close relationship between both countries as well as the integrated nature of significant parts of the Canadian and U.S. defence industries.
While Canada has traditionally not scrutinized most arms sales to the United States, the Foreign Affairs Minister has the ability to block exports. In 2024, then-Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly blocked U.S.-bound exports of ammunition. The ordnance, manufactured in Quebec, was being sold to the U.S. government for onward export to Israel.
Ottawa, however, has little say over a Canadian company’s defence production in the United States for U.S. customers.
The ICE contract is for Senator Emergency Response Tactical Vehicles. These machines provide armoured protection from rifles, grenade attacks or mines and have bullet-resistant glass.
