Advice contained in PM’s briefing book explains why Liberals are standing by $15B arms deal with Saudis
Federal officials have told Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that Canada’s strategic interest would be well served by strengthening economic ties with oil-rich Saudi Arabia because of its powerful position in the Persian Gulf, the Canadian Press reported Jan. 7th.
That advice sheds light on why the Liberals are rejecting calls to cancel a $15-billion sale of armored vehicles to Saudi Arabia.
The assessments are contained in Trudeau’s briefing book, a copy of which was obtained by The Canadian Press under Access to Information.
Canada’s interests in the tumultuous region are spelled out in the briefings prepared for Trudeau, who faces calls to cancel the lucrative sale of light armored vehicles by an Ontario company.
'Further deepening of strategic relations with the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) countries would serve Canadian commercial and possibly security interests,' the memo states, pointing to Saudi Arabia as the leading player in the six-country bloc that includes the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar.
'Current bilateral engagement includes a particular focus on Saudi Arabia and the UAE,' it says. 'Saudi Arabia is a regional power, the only Arab country in the G20. It is a key contributor to global energy security and Canada’s largest trading partner in the region.'
The memo says there are trade and investment opportunities for Canada in the Gulf region because its economies are 'diversifying into areas of Canadian strength, including financial, education, health care services, agriculture, as well as infrastructure.'
In an interview with CBC News Network’s Power & Politics on Wednesday, Dion said the Liberals would stand by the $15 billion arms deal.
'We’ll review the process by which these contracts are assessed in the future. But what is done is done and the contract is not something that we’ll revisit,' Dion told host Rosemary Barton.
During the recent federal election campaign, former Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Trudeau both backed the deal.
Fen Hampson, an international security expert with Canada’s Centre for International Governance Innovation, said the rupture of relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran, the two dominant Islamic powers in the region, could escalate to direct military confrontation beyond the current proxy wars they are fighting in Iraq, Syria and Yemen.
That advice sheds light on why the Liberals are rejecting calls to cancel a $15-billion sale of armored vehicles to Saudi Arabia.
The assessments are contained in Trudeau’s briefing book, a copy of which was obtained by The Canadian Press under Access to Information.
Canada’s interests in the tumultuous region are spelled out in the briefings prepared for Trudeau, who faces calls to cancel the lucrative sale of light armored vehicles by an Ontario company.
'Further deepening of strategic relations with the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) countries would serve Canadian commercial and possibly security interests,' the memo states, pointing to Saudi Arabia as the leading player in the six-country bloc that includes the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar.
'Current bilateral engagement includes a particular focus on Saudi Arabia and the UAE,' it says. 'Saudi Arabia is a regional power, the only Arab country in the G20. It is a key contributor to global energy security and Canada’s largest trading partner in the region.'
The memo says there are trade and investment opportunities for Canada in the Gulf region because its economies are 'diversifying into areas of Canadian strength, including financial, education, health care services, agriculture, as well as infrastructure.'
In an interview with CBC News Network’s Power & Politics on Wednesday, Dion said the Liberals would stand by the $15 billion arms deal.
'We’ll review the process by which these contracts are assessed in the future. But what is done is done and the contract is not something that we’ll revisit,' Dion told host Rosemary Barton.
During the recent federal election campaign, former Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Trudeau both backed the deal.
Fen Hampson, an international security expert with Canada’s Centre for International Governance Innovation, said the rupture of relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran, the two dominant Islamic powers in the region, could escalate to direct military confrontation beyond the current proxy wars they are fighting in Iraq, Syria and Yemen.
Aucun commentaire:
Enregistrer un commentaire