Harper says Syrian unrest now a sectarian war
PM wants Egypt to hold democratic elections and maintains a hard line against Iran
TEL AVIV — Prime Minister Stephen Harper launched a blistering assessment Wednesday of unrest in the Arab world saying the Syrian civil war has descended into a regional sectarian battle, Egypt is grappling with democracy, and Iran is still led by an “extremist” and “hateful” regime.
He made the comments as he received a university doctorate on his last day of a trip to Israel, where he was praised repeatedly for his fervent support of the country.
In a question and answer interview with a local journalist, the prime minister spoke bluntly.
On Syria, Harper said he believes the civil war that began as protests against President Bashar Assad has turned into something much bigger than a conflict against a “brutal regime.”
“In my judgment, it has clearly become over time ... very much a sectarian war that is backed by and part of a wider sectarian conflict in the region.”
Harper said the conflict is now between Shia and Sunni Muslims. The Shias are supported by Iran, he said, and the Sunni insurgency is “increasingly extreme and dangerous.”
“I don’t see how the victory of either of those forces could be in the interests of Canada or Israel or anyone else. The only real victory can be some kind of accommodation and conciliation between them.”
Later Wednesday, Harper flew to Jordan, which has been swamped by hundreds of thousands of refugees who have escaped the war in Syria.
Canada has provided financial assistance to handle that refugee crisis. Harper will meet Jordanian King Abdullah II on Thursday and travel to refugee camps near the Jordan-Syria border the next day.
“The nature and the scale of the suffering that is going on in that country (Syria) is almost incomprehensible, and it is truly heartbreaking,” Harper said Wednesday.
On Egypt, Harper was somewhat more optimistic.
He said Canada welcomes the “return of stability” — in reference to Egypt’s removal last year of its president, Mohamed Morsi.
“At the same time, we understand if the new government is to be truly successful over time in Egypt, they do have to transition towards a democratic order, and obviously with respect for human rights and the rule of law.”
Harper said people should be “chastened” by the lessons learned since the Arab Spring protests three years ago swept through Egypt.
“There was a lot of enthusiasm, unbridled enthusiasm in much of the West for the revolution in Egypt, and with very good reason. We were a little more cautious, and I think that caution has been borne out.”
Harper said that instead of the “revolution” producing a democracy, it led to an “authoritarian Islamic state.”
“We want elections to lead to democracy and to the things we understand that are important for human rights and prosperity and security in the long term.”
He said that means countries need to pressure the Egyptian government to move in the “right direction” and ensure that it doesn’t deteriorate to the point where “forces from the street ... run out of control.”
On Iran, Harper maintained a hard line and insisted that “nobody is under any illusion” about a sixmonth agreement that international powers have struck over its nuclear program.
“It is important that we all recognize this for what it is. This is a regime in Iran, an extremist fundamentalist regime with a violent and hateful ideology, and it wants to possess nuclear weapons.”
Under last November’s agreement, Iran will limit its uranium enrichment to five per cent, which is the grade used to power reactors. It will also stop producing 20 per cent enriched uranium, which is close to nuclear weapons-grade material.