The politics behind Canada’s Iraq war adventure

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Journalist Thomas Walkom provides a perspective on the political imperatives behind Canada’s recent involvement in Iraq (“The politics behind Canada’s Iraq war adventure: Walkom,” Toronto Star, 9 September 2014):

For politicians, Canada’s involvement in the latest Iraq war is the hottest of hot potatoes.

The Conservative government, which decided to send “dozens” of elite special operations troops to the war-torn country, is adamant to the point of incoherence that no Canadian soldier will take part in any battle.

“We’re not putting boots on the ground,” Defence Minister Rob Nicholson repeatedly told a Commons committee Tuesday — a curious pledge in that it left open the question of where exactly Canadian troops operating there will place their feet.

Read the full article here.

Photo credit: Safin Hamed

Tags: Canada, Canadian foreign policy, Canadian military, Canadian politics, Iraq, IS, ISIS