With the USA, Russia and China now engaged in an arms race to develop terrifying new “hypersonic weapons” of unimaginable speed and maneuverability, we call on Canada to champion urgently needed multilateral arms control talks.
The new Ukrainian President has broken with the entrenched political old guard in his country and made peace negotiations with Russia his top priority. Yet, instead of forthrightly supporting this new approach, FM Freeland continues with her same old anti-Russian rhetoric.
Delusions of prevailing in nuclear war, fantasy development plans for Mid-East peace, journalistic lapses on the true nature of the U.S.-Iran confrontation and new developments in Canada’s sordid Saudi arms deal all cry out for courageous, creative diplomacy.
We welcome Canada’s long overdue accession to the global Arms Trade Treaty. But it will only be meaningful if it is accompanied by concrete action to end our complicity in the suffering of innocent Yemeni civilians by suspending the export of Canadian-made LAVs to Saudi Arabia.
Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland spurns a high-level meeting on nuclear dangers hosted by her Swedish counterpart. Meanwhile, she and the Prime Minister remain silent over heightening tensions between Iran and USA.
While debate continues to rage over the finding of “genocide”, the main focus going forward must be on ensuring justice and accountability.