Even back in the 1980's this was an issue, as Canada and many of the Western Europeans freeloaded on the backs of Britain, the U.S., and maybe a couple of other countries. With the Soviet threat gone, most Europeans seem only interested, more or less, in reducing their militaries to the lowest possible level; Canada was like that until just a few years ago, but only a very modest recovery has been made, and it could prove very temporary depending upon whomever wins the next federal election.
