Defense Minister Bill Blair said Thursday that despite this week’s drama over the House of Commons vote to halt future arms exports to Israel, the motion approved by the House of Commons does not change Canada’s approach to the file in any way. Stated.
“We haven’t changed,” he told CBC. power and politics Thursday. “I see this as a continuation of existing government policy.”
Most Liberal MPs, including ministers, joined the NDP on Monday in supporting a motion to suspend new arms export licenses to Israel. The motion was significantly amended by the Liberals before it was put to a vote.
But confusion over what the motion actually does has grown in the days since, with some groups claiming it amounts to an arms embargo and others simply reinforcing business as usual. He claims to just do it.
Although the motion is not binding, Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly told reporters: “It is clear that the government’s intention is to ensure that we comply with what is written in this motion.” Ta. His office also said Canada stopped approving permits to Israel on Jan. 8.
Prime Minister Blair said the government would respect export licenses approved by that date and suspend approvals going forward.
“And as of January 8th, Global Affairs has not and will not issue any new permits for military equipment to Israel. And they have made that clear well before this motion. ” he said.
Before supporting the motion on Monday, the government adjusted a clause that had originally called for the federal government to “cease all trade in munitions and technology with Israel.” The approved amendment now agrees to “suspend further authorizations and transfers of arms exports to Israel.”
In a statement released after the motion passed, NDP MP Heather McPherson, who spearheaded the motion, said her party expected “the government to halt all arms exports to Israel.” Stated.
NDP MP Heather McPherson debated a motion she made and was later amended. Quebec Liberal MP Anthony Housefather offers personal insight into the majority of his caucus colleagues who support the motion. And the Power Panel looks at the political implications.
“There is no justification for sending weapons into conflicts where they can be used to violate human rights,” she said.
Canada’s controversial motion initially called for the federal government to formally recognize a Palestinian state, but was amended before a late-night vote in Parliament House.
Advisor compares motion to Canada’s World War II policy
Israel condemned the motion.
On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s foreign affairs adviser Ofir Falk compared the House of Commons’ symbolic motion to Canada’s anti-Semitic immigration policies before World War II.
“We are grateful for the support we have received from Canada and hope that continues,” Faulk said. Host David Cochran.
“But it seems like this is another ‘all too much’ moment for Canada, and that’s very unfortunate.”
The phrase “none too many” is believed to have originated with a senior government official in the government of Prime Minister William Ryan Mackenzie King who was asked in 1945 how many Jews should be allowed into Canada. There is.
The phrase has been used to describe the anti-Semitic sentiment that guided Canada’s immigration policy at the time. From 1933 to 1945, only about 5,000 Jewish refugees were admitted to Canada.
These feelings had tragic consequences. In 1939, the Canadian government refused a shipment of German Jews fleeing the Nazis. About 500 of them eventually returned to Germany, and 254 were killed in concentration camps and concentration camps.
In 2018, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau publicly apologized for the Canadian government’s decision to deny passengers the right to disembark aboard the MS St. Louis.
“If this motion passes, it will be a badge of shame,” Faulk said.
“I understand that the Canadian government, Prime Minister Trudeau, doesn’t want to give us the means to win. Israel will win.”
Mr. Blair pushed back.
“I think he’s wrong. That’s a bit of an exaggeration,” he said. “Canada’s position was clearly expressed well before the resolution.”
Following the Hamas-led attack on October 7, Israel launched an offensive in the Gaza Strip. Officials said the Hamas attack killed about 1,200 people in Israel, mostly civilians but also soldiers, police and security officials. Hundreds of hostages were taken to Gaza.
Gazan health officials said as of last week Israeli military operations had killed more than 31,000 people, including thousands of children, and displaced nearly 2 million more.
Falk disputed these figures and reiterated Israel’s position that it did not target civilians and was only interested in eliminating the Islamic extremist movement Hamas.
Earlier this week, a UN-backed report said famine was imminent in northern Gaza and could spread across the territory as the war enters its fifth month.
The Integrated Food Security Tiering Report further states that hundreds of thousands of people in Palestinian enclaves will experience “catastrophic” levels of hunger.
On Monday, the European Union accused Israel of using hunger as a weapon of war, a claim Israel also rejects.
