Foreign policy of the Harper government

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The Conservative Party Government of Canada led by Prime Minister Stephen Harper has been involved in several ways overseas, particularly due to its role alongside the United States in the War against terror originated from the September 11, 2001 attacks in the U.S.

[edit] Relations with the United States

Stephen Harper and George W. Bush hold a joint press conference at the White House on July 6, 2006

Stephen Harper had promised during the 2006 election campaign on improving relations with United States in which he mentioned that the previous Liberal government tainted with several critics and inappropriate comments made towards the George W.Bush administration

Shortly after being congratulated by George W. Bush for his victory, Harper rebuked U.S. Ambassador to Canada David Wilkins for criticizing the Conservatives' plans to assert Canada's sovereignty over the Arctic Ocean waters with armed forces.

[edit] U.S. Ambassador

On February 16, 2006, Harper named former Progressive Conservative Party Cabinet Minister Michael Wilson as Governor General Michaëlle Jean's appointee to the post of Canada's Ambassador to the United States, replacing Liberal appointee Frank McKenna.^[1]

Wilson stated in his first press conference as Ambassador that "Softwood lumber is clearly at the top of the heap, the top priority. ^[2]

[edit] First meeting with U.S. President Bush

Harper's first meeting with the U.S. President occurred at the end of March, 2006; and while little was achieved in the way of solid agreements, the trip was described in the media as signaling a trend of closer relations between the two nations. Harper told the press that he used "colorful language not suitable for public television" when pressing President Bush privately over his opposition to a U.S. law that will require Canadian citizens to show their passport when crossing the border into the United States. Bush reported that Harper was "a very open, straightforward fella.... If he's got a problem, he's willing to express it in a way that's clear for all to understand, and that's the way I like to deal with people."^[3] The two would later met in July at the White House.

[edit] Softwood lumber dispute

On April 27, 2006, Harper announced in Parliament that the government had reached a seven-year agreement with the United States in the nations' long-standing feud over softwood lumber. Trade Minister David Emerson had vowed since its post-election defection from the Liberals to the Tories to deal with the issue as soon as possible while Ambassador Wilson mentioned it as its first priority.

The three major softwood-producing provinces — British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec — accepted the compromise.^[4] Leader of the Opposition Bill Graham and NDP leader Jack Layton did not, criticising the deal for not requiring the U.S. to pay back all $5 billion it had collected in tariffs on Canadian softwood lumber.^[5]

On September 12, 2006, the Canadian and U.S governments officially signed the deal in Ottawa ending the dispute.^[6] Still, it was subject for a confidence vote in the House of Commons during the fall session. The deal would likely have passed with the support of the Bloc Quebecois.^[7] On September 19, the House voted in favor of the deal 172 to 116 in first reading which eliminated its final hurdle until its official realization^[8]

However, Canada has not fully complied to all conditions of the deal before October 1, 2006, the deadline date for both countries to comply.

[edit] NORAD

Following a debate and vote in the House of Commons, the Harper government renewed the NORAD agreement with the United States, making it permanent and adding maritime defense to the agreement, which previously covered only air defense. Members of the NDP who were highly critical of the agreement, arguing that the arrangement will reduce Canadian sovereignty over the country's internal waters.

[edit] Anti-ballistic missile defense

Previously, the federal government refused to participate in the U.S led project on th anti-missile defense system which would intercept foreign missiles that represents a menace for the Americas.

Stephen Harper had promised a free-vote on the participation of Canada in the project but recently told that his country will not participate.

[edit] Arctic lands and waters

Harper declared in early 2006 that the Arctic waters that are located between the Canadian islands of the Nunavut and Northwest territories belongs to Canada. However, U.S officials, including newly-named U.S ambassador to Canada, David Wilkins said that those waters were in neutral territory. During the summer of 2006, Harper went to the Arctic region in Alert, Nunavut to defend the country's northern sovereignty not only for the neutral territory issue but also due to the greater attention giving by foreign countries in regards of the land's wide variety of resources. In addition, the government planned to continue fundings for adding military boats and personnel to patrol and defend the northern waters. ^[9]

U.S. President George W. Bush, Mexico's President Vicente Fox and Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper, right, stand in front of the Chichen-Itza archaeological ruins Thursday, March 30, 2006.

[edit] Passport and border security

The United States government had created the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative which would require before June 2009 that all Canadians and Americans must have a valid passport in order to enter the United States by land or boat. Similar measures will be enforced in 2007 for air-travelers heading to the U.S. The current Canadian Ambassador to the U.S Michael Wilson expressed some concerns that the law could pass before the supposed date and may cause problems for businesses and travelers, but the law previously had a 2007 deadline.

Wilson previously said in an interview on CTV's Question Period in July 2006 that the economy would not be greatly affected by the new measure but The Federation of Canadian Municipalities expressed that particular concern. ^{[10] [11] [12]}

The Harper government announced in 2006, among several border security policies, that before 2016 all border guards will be equipped with weapons to track possible criminals, including those carrying firearms, that may pass the border on either side of it. The guards had requested the weapons in a previous negotiation. Also, Harper had spend for over $100 million to add extra staff to patrol borders. 400 or more new officers will be added. ^[13]

[edit] War on terror

[edit] Deployment in Afghanistan

The Canadian government had accepted to participate in the war against terrorism since the September 11 attacks in the United States. Later that year, the government send troops in Afghanistan to combat the Taliban regime which it was ousted by the coalition forces. After ousting, the troops remained in the area to assure security and peace as Taliban resistance were frequent in the following months. So far, 44 Canadian soldiers and a diplomat were killed in Afghanistan, most of them in 2006 when resurgence from the former regime became more frequent and more violent. Since the Conservative government were elected in 2006, several of the key members of the Cabinet including Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay, Defense Minister Gordon O'Connor and Minister of International Co-operation Josee Verner visited the region in support of the troops or for rebuilding projects

[edit] Mission extension

In early 2006, the Conservative government proposed a motion to extend the Canadian military mission in Afghanistan by two years. In May 2006, the House of Commons passed a motion, after a short six-hour debate, to extend the mission until 2009 by a slim 149-145 majority.^[14]

[edit] Flag policy

The Harper government re-instituted a policy of lowering the national flag at military installations such as Department of National Defence headquarters only , drawing criticism that the government was showing a lack of respect for the soldiers. Previously, the flag was lowered at the Peace Tower of Parliament Hill. ^[15]

[edit] Harper's speeches on Afghanistan

In a televised speech on September 11, 2006, five years after the attacks in New York City and Washington D.C., Harper linked the events of that day with the current mission in Afghanistan, and encouraged continued support for Canada's military efforts against the Taliban.^[16] During another speech this time at the United Nations Assembly in New York on September 21, he asked the organization for help and mentioned that the crisis "is a test of the world body's relevance" and being the UN's most important test and mission for it.^[17]

[edit] Opposition

While most Canadians support the Canadian Armed Forces in general, the opinion is divided in regards to the necessity of the mission. However, a late-October 2006 survey showed that a majority of Canadians approves the mission despite an increase of casualties from Canadian troops over the past few months. ^[18]

Among the opposition parties, the New Democratic Party add asked in multiple occasions to the government for the withdrawal of the troops, but was the only party that was fully against the project. ^[19] The Bloc Quebecois had previously asked about an emergency debate in the House of the Commons but haven't showed any opposition to the conflict which the Tories refused. ^[20] On December 12, the Bloc's Deputy Leader Michel Gauthier told the media that the party even considered to introduce a confidence motion on the mission that could topple the government. ^[21]

[edit] Military spending

Harper had promised that he would improve the military fleet of ships as well as increasing the overall number of soldiers. In the 2006 budget, the Canadian Armed Forces received an additional $5.3 billion over five years. ^[22]

Defense Minister Gordon O'Connor had later requested additional funding of about 15 billion dollars to improve the fleet of helicopters and aircrafts such as the RAF Boeing Chinook helicopter, the Boeing C-17 Globe Masters plane, and the Lockheed Martin Hercules aircraft. Most of the equipment would serve for the soldiers currently serving in Afghanistan. These new equipments would be in addition to new Sikorsky helicopters requested by the previous government's defense minister Bill Graham. ^[23]

[edit] Israel-Lebanon conflict

Harper at the 32^nd G8 summit, held July 15-17, 2006, which focused much of its attention on the Israel-Lebanon conflict.

Main article: International reactions to the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict

At the outset of the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict, Harper defended publicly Israel's "right to defend itself," and described the invasion of Lebanon as a "measured" response, feeling that Hezbollah and Hamas's release of Israeli prisoners would be the key to ending the conflict.^[24] Many Arab-Canadians criticized Harper's description of the response as "measured". On July 17, 2006, Harper noted that the situation had deteriorated since his initial comments, but that it was difficult for Israel to fight "non-governmental forces" embedded in the civilian population. Harper reiterated his earlier support for Israel and called on both sides to show restraint and minimize civilian casualties.

The Canadian government made arrangements to evacuate about 30,000 Canadians, mainly of Lebanese descent, from Lebanon after hostilities broke out. The response was criticized as slow and inefficient.^[25] Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay had defended the response mentioning that the capacity of the ships were limited.

On July 17, a group of protesters, primarily expatriate Lebanese, protested Israeli aggression in front of the Israeli consulate in Montreal; further protests took place July 22 in localities across Canada.^[26]

Despite criticisms, Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay joined Harper in reiterating support for Israel's position and urging restraint while calling for a ceasefire. Speaking of the situation in both Lebanon and Gaza on July 18, Harper told reporters, "We all want to encourage not just a ceasefire, but a resolution. And a resolution will only be achieved when everyone gets to the table and everyone admits... recognition of each other," referring to the refusal of Hezbollah and Hamas to recognize Israel's right to exist. Harper laid the blame for the civilian deaths on both sides at the feet of Hezbollah. "Hezbollah's objective is violence," Harper asserted, "Hezbollah believes that through violence it can create, it can bring about the destruction of Israel. Violence will not bring about the destruction of Israel... and inevitably the result of the violence will be the deaths primarily of innocent people.".^[27]

In August 2006, Peterborough MP Dean Del Mastro was scheduled for a National Council on Canada-Arab Relations-planned visit to Lebanon along with members of the Opposition parties. However, shortly before his departure, Del Mastro canceled his trip citing for security reasons. ^{[28] [29]}

[edit] Other international issues

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[edit] North Korea

The Conservative government had condemned the nuclear testing conducted by the North Korean regime of Kim Jong-Il in October 2006. MacKay had strongly supported any sanctions by the United Nations and its Security Council against the country such as trade restrictions on goods and arms as well as possible trade embargoes. ^[30]

Prior to the nuclear testing, MacKay also condemned a previous missile testing made by North Korea in July 2006 and called the country a major threat for the stability of the eastern Asian region. Harper had responded that "the fact that (North Korea) is prepared to arm itself and prepared to threaten to use such armaments... is something that we should be gravely concerned about" ^[31]

During the APEC summit, in which North Korea is not an APEC country, Canada had send a diplomat to deal with the nuclear issue. ^[32]

[edit] AIDS

The City of Toronto hosted an international summit on AIDS, a worldwide issue which affects also Canada. Health Minister Tony Clement represented the government while Stephen Harper didn't attended the summit due to issues surrounded the Canadian Arctic region, which drew heavy criticism by organizers. After the conference, Clement didn't announced at the conference any Canadian funding or measures on combating the disease, "because it was becoming difficult to have a "rational discussion"" However, he did added that the country had significantly increased its financial part for the matter. ^{[33] [34]} On World AIDS Day, December 1, 2006, Canada had announced a 250-million dollar pledge over a two-year period for the fight against AIDS and promised a 10-year 450 million dollar funding to African countries who are hit harder by the disease. Stephen Lewis a UN Special Envoy had requested a funding of 30 billion dollars by the G8 countries including Canada by 2010 ^[35]

[edit] Relations with China

While China had rapidly progressed during the 1990's, the Canadian government concluded several economic and partnership deals with the country. However, when the Conservative government took power in 2006, relations between the two had changed most notably due on the question of human rights in China. The Conservative government had criticized its human rights records. President Hu Jintao criticized Canada for making the Dalai-Lama an honorary citizen. Hu also criticized the government and denied any abuse of human rights.

Before the APEC summit in November 2006, the issue of human rights was a hot topic on Harper's agenda. He discussed the issue in Vietnam with Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung where there have been also criticism on the country's respect of rights. ^[36]

At the APEC summit in Hanoi, Vietnam, Harper met with Hu, after tensions between the two countries nearly called off a scheduled meeting between the two leaders. There were no official reports of discussions on the issue of human rights, but Harper had urged that the relations between the two countries needs to be built. ^[37]

[edit] See also

• Stephen Harper
• Domestic policy of the Harper government

[edit] Footnotes