Prime Minister Stephen Harper treated Canadians to a self-righteous description of his government’s “principled” foreign policy stance at the recent Conservative Party convention (Steven Chase, “Canadian foreign policy needs to be more independent: Harper,” Globe and Mail, 10 June 2011; see also Elizabeth Thompson, “‘We still have more to do …’: Harper vows to woo […]
Archive | June, 2011
June 25th: Nuclear Abolition Day
The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) is coordinating ‘Nuclear Abolition Day’ to mobilize for a treaty to outlaw and eliminate all nuclear weapons. See how you can get involved by going to nuclearabolition.org. At last year’s Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference, the five original nuclear weapon states – the United States, Russia, the United […]
Leger & Dorn: Re-engage in peacekeeping
Canada’s role on the international stage is in urgent need of clear direction. Dominic Leger and Walter Dorn argue that the time has come for Canada to re-engage in UN peacekeeping (Dominic Leger & Walter Dorn, “It’s time to keep the peace again,” National Post, 3 June 2011): Peacekeeping is a key tool in maintaining […]
Edmonton Journal: Libya mission deserves debate
The Edmonton Journal adds its name to the list of those urging Canadians to conduct a more thorough debate on Canada’s role in Libya and expeditionary operations in general (Libya Mission Deserves Debate, Edmonton Journal, 7 June 2011): Debate about Canada’s role in Libya is long overdue. Discussion in Parliament should also spark a new […]
All your base are lease to us?
The Conservative government is negotiating to establish a series of military support bases around the world, Defence Minister Peter MacKay has confirmed (Tristin Hopper, Canada to expand military reach with new facilities across the globe, National Post, 2 June 2011): The plan, dubbed the Operation Support Hubs Network, involves establishing a permanent presence in up […]
Should Canada extend Libya mission?
Last week the Conservative government let it be known that it intends to extend Canada’s military mission in Libya (Jordan Press, “Critics say future of Libyan mission requires clarity to avoid another Afghanistan,” Postmedia News, 1 June 2011): The federal government indicated Wednesday it will extend Canada’s mission in Libya, following a NATO decision to […]