HARPER’S CASE FOR WAR IN IRAQ
PM seeks to deploy fighter jets, avoid on-the-ground combat.
More than 600 members of the Canadian military will be deployed as part of Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s plan for a combat mission to send CF-18 fighter jets to battle Islamic State extremists in Iraq.
The mission, to be debated and voted on in the House of Commons early next week, is shaping up to be politically explosive. Both the New Democrats and Liberals on Friday rejected Harper’s rationale for combat and said they will oppose the government’s plan, which was spelled out in a motion introduced in Parliament.
The motion, to be debated Monday, is assured of passage because the governing Conservatives have a majority.
In an address to the House of Commons on Friday, Harper said his plan will not include on- the- ground combat by Canadian soldiers and that he is trying to prevent Canada from being sucked into a “prolonged quagmire.” The mission will last up to six months.
“In a democracy, especially one approaching an election, there is rarely political upside in supporting any kind of military action, and little political risk in opposing it,” said Harper, but he added that Canada won’t ask other countries to bear the military burden against Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL.
Canada, he said, has never opted to leave the “tough things for others.”
Under the government’s plan, Canada will provide “air strike capability” to help a coalition of allies bomb Islamic State, bringing this country from a non-combat to a combat role. The government says the move will involve up to six CF-18 fighter jets, including about 320 aircrew and other personnel.
Canada also plans to send two Aurora surveillance aircraft and one air-to-air refuelling aircraft. This will involve about 280 aircrew and other personnel.
Furthermore, the government is extending the non-combat deployment of up to 69 members of the Canadian Army, some of whom are already in Iraq.
Harper did not specify in his speech to Parliament how many military personnel in total will be involved in the mission; those details were only released late Friday. But NDP foreign affairs critic Paul Dewar said Harper should have been more forthcoming in his address to MPs.
“He was trying to underplay how big this is. Not sharing the information in his speech shows he was trying to cover up on the details and not share with Canadians what the actual plans are.”
In his speech, Harper stressed that the measures are part of a “counter-terrorism” plan to defeat Islamic State, which has been growing in strength in Iraq and Syria in recent months.
He also outlined Canada’s plans for humanitarian measures to assist the thousands of refugees in the region. He said Islamic State has established
There is rarely political upside in supporting any kind of military action.
STEPHEN HARPER
PRIME MINISTER
control over a vast territory in Iraq and Syria “from which it intends to launch a terrorist jihad, not merely against the region, but on a global basis.”
“Indeed, it has specifically targeted Canada and Canadians,” said Harper.
“ISIL’s words are matched by its actions. In the territory ISIL has occupied, it has conducted a campaign of unspeakable atrocities against the most innocent of people. It has tortured and beheaded children. It has raped and sold women into slavery.”
Both NDP leader Tom Mulcair and Liberal leader Justin Trudeau responded with warnings about what Canada may face, noting that when Harper was opposition leader in 2003, he wanted Canada to join the U.S. war against Iraq.
“All of the horrors unfolding before our eyes are the result of that failed mission,” said Mulcair. “Will Canada be stuck a decade from now mired in a war we wisely avoided entering a decade ago?”
Mulcair said Harper has failed to answer some key questions, such as the cost of the combat mission, and how Canada will extricate itself from the fray in six months.
“Canada, for our part, should not rush into this war,” he said. “Canada’s first contribution should be to use every diplomatic, humanitarian and financial resource at our disposal to respond to the overwhelming human tragedy unfolding on the ground and strengthen political institutions in both those countries.”
Trudeau, who supported the non-combat mission to Iraq that began nearly a month ago, said his party is unconvinced that a combat mission is the best thing for Canada.
He said this country should be focusing on other noncombat roles such as military training, strategic airlift, medical support and humanitarian aid.