(March 17): Canada has no intention of joining military operations against Iran, the country’s foreign minister Anita Anand told Bloomberg on Tuesday.
“Canada was not consulted prior to the offensive operation” — which, she added, the country hasn’t participated in and “has no intention of participating in.”
Canada, a founding member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, has struck a cautious tone on the Iran war. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney previously urged de-escalation but didn’t rule out Ottawa defending its allies.
In Ankara on Tuesday, Anand responded to US President Donald Trump’s call for Nato allies to help secure the Hormuz Strait, saying that the waterway and the larger Middle East are not within the alliance’s geographic focus.
The strait has been effectively closed since the US and Israel launched joint attacks on Iran more than two weeks ago, roiling oil markets and global shipping. About a fifth of the world’s oil moves through the narrow channel.
Insurance rates for the handful of ships still willing to cross the waterway have skyrocketed after attacks on vessels. This has led Trump to call on allies to underwrite the costs to help boost companies’ appetite for crossing. “I have not received a request of that sort,” Anand said.
See also: Criticism of Trump mounts in UAE as Iran barrage continues
She added that the work of Nato allies is “on the defensive side, on deterrence”.
“Those are the principles that we will be seeking to uphold in taking all decisions together with our Nato allies,” she said, referring to upcoming meetings with allies. She added that Canada has been working with a small group of countries to promote de-escalation and the protection of civilian life and infrastructure.
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