Canada won’t arm rebels against Assad
Humanitarian aid to continue, Harper says
DUBLIN — Prime Minister Stephen Harper says Canada is not at the “present time” considering arming the Syrian opposition — but does not rule it out — as he assailed Russian President Vladimir Putin for making the G8 a “G7 plus one” by continuing to support the “thugs” in the Assad regime.
Harper moved Canada closer toward its G8 partners on Sunday on the eve of the Group of Eight summit in Northern Ireland, saying he understands why Canada’s allies — including the U.S., Britain and France — have moved toward arming the Syrian rebels, given chemical weapons have been used by the Assad regime and that Russia and Iran continue to send arms to government forces.
Putin fired his own attack at Western leaders Sunday, questioning why they would want to arm Syrian rebels who eat human organs, as the tension continues to build within the G8 on how to resolve the Syrian conflict.
Harper and his government have for months opposed arming Syrian rebels over fears the weapons could end up in the hands of what he calls “extremist elements” fighting inside the country.
But pressure has been mounting on Harper during his eightday European trip to rethink Canada’s policy on Syria in the lead-up to the G8 meetings on Monday and Tuesday.
“We are not in Canada, now, we are not contemplating arming the opposition in Syria. I understand — fully understand — why our allies would do that, particularly given recent actions by Russia, Iran and others. But our aid, now and our aid for now, will continue to be humanitarian aid,” Harper told reporters in Dublin, following a bilateral meeting with Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny.
U.S. President Barack Obama has authorized shipping small arms to Syrian rebels after American officials said they have conclusive evidence Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime used chemical weapons against opposition forces. Any military aid delivered to Syrian opposition forces would be coordinated by the Central Intelligence Agency.
France and Britain have also been leaning toward arming the rebels, under certain conditions, in an effort to turn the tide against Hezbollah-backed government forces that have been making significant gains on the opposition over the last few weeks.
Harper said it’s important to have a dialogue with Russia at the G8 table, but that Putin continues to be an outlier in the group when it comes to Syria.
“I don’t think we should fool ourselves. This is G7 plus one. OK, let’s be blunt,” added Harper, who took two questions Sunday from Canadian reporters with him on the trip.
“We in the West have a very different perspective on this situation. Mr. Putin and his government are supporting the thugs of the Assad regime for their own reasons that I do not think are justifiable, and Mr. Putin knows my view on that. But we will not, unless there’s a big shift of position on his part, we’re not going to get a common position with him at the G8.”
He said it’s important for Canada to work with its allies in the G7 and NATO to find a solution toward a government in Syria that is democratic, representative of its people and “not embracing of terrorist or extremist elements.”
Canada’s shifting position — although not firmly in the camp of the Americans — may end up being one of power broker when the G8 talks begin, said Christian Lepreucht, a military strategy expert from Queen’s University and Royal Military College in Kingston, Ont.
“The Russians and Americans are so polarized on this issue that there are few countries that can play the middle ground,” Lepreucht said.
“Canada may find itself in a position here, as it becomes more polarized among the superpowers, it may try to revert to its traditional position to be an honest broker.”
Canada holds no concrete, geopolitical interests in Syria, he said, outside of “preserving whatever stability we can preserve” and reining in the spread of radicalism and sectarian strife.
Harper is scheduled to hold bilateral meetings Monday with the G8 leaders of Germany, Italy and Japan, following talks with British Prime Minister David Cameron and French President François Hollande over the past few days.
Cameron told British media Sunday that no decision had been made on whether the United Kingdom would follow the U.S.’s lead on arming the rebels, but stressed that it was “right to send a very clear message to Assad that he shouldn’t think he can just win this conflict in a military way.”
The British prime minister acknowledged there are “very dangerous” pockets within the Syrian opposition forces, but also far more moderate elements who support a free society.
“If we don’t work with those elements of the Syrian opposition, then we can’t be surprised if the only elements of the Syrian opposition that are ... actually making any progress in Syria, are the ones that we don’t approve of,” Cameron said in an interview on one of Britain’s top Sunday political talk shows.
Putin, following his meeting with Cameron in London, warned Western countries against arming the rebels, highlighting video footage on the Internet of an opposition fighter eating what appeared to be the heart of a government soldier.
The Russian leader is scheduled to hold talks with Obama on Monday.
“You will not deny the fact that one hardly should back those who kill their enemies, and eat their organs and film all of that,” Putin told reporters through a translator during a joint news conference with Cameron. “Do you want to supply arms to these people?”
While Harper says he’s convinced chemical weapons were used by the Assad regime on the opposition forces, Canada has been strongly opposing arming the rebels.
Harper, in a speech last Thursday to members of the British Parliament, said world leaders face “a grotesque dilemma” of wanting Assad out of power, but that the “extremist, sectarian nature” of the opposition forces can’t be ignored.
Earlier Sunday, Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird told CTV the American decision to ship small arms to Syrian rebels will create a more level playing field and encourage the Assad regime and the opposition to return to the negotiating table.
“We’re not going to criticize our allies,” Baird told CTV’s Question Period, adding that he expected the U.S. to be selective and careful about who receives American arms.“All of us want to see a better level playing field so that both Assad and the opposition can return to the negotiating table … to achieve a political solution.”