After less than a year of official peace, Canada once again finds itself at war.
Having formally ended its military commitments in Afghanistan back in March, the country finds itself on the brink of a new conflict after Conservative MPs, led by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, last week voted to join the war in Iraq and fight the militants of the self proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
After two days of debating the issue, the motion to launch a combat mission against ISIS passed with a 157-134 majority vote on Oct. 7 – a move that will see six CF-18s and several Canadian Forces personnel from CFB Cold Lake head overseas.
“We did not take this step lightly,” Harper said in a statement following the vote. “It is imperative that we act with our allies to halt ISIL's (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, also known as ISIS) spread in the region and reduce its capacity to launch terrorist attacks outside the region, including against Canada.”
He added, “Our government has a duty to protect Canadians and to shoulder our burden in efforts to combat threats such as ISIL. We must do our part.”
ISIS, an evolved group with ties to al-Qaeda, is a Sunni Jihadist unrecognized state in Iraq and Syria in the Middle East. The terrorist organization has seized large portions of land in both nations and is believed to have carried out a multitude of extremist war crimes in the area previously known as the Levant. The group is also responsible for a series of high-profile kidnappings and beheadings of Western civilians in recent months.
The government has yet to provide specifics regarding the cost of the mission, the terms of the engagement or a firm exit strategy. The motion did indicate that this would be a six-month mission, although Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird stated there was a possibility it could be extended beyond that.
Canada will join the United Kingdom, France, Denmark, the Netherlands and Australia, as well as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Bahrain in launching air strikes against ISIS. Military officials across the country will now be tasked with ironing out the final details with allies so the first of up to six CF-18s, two surveillance aircraft, a refueling plane and about 600 Canadian Forces personnel can be prepared for deployment, with facilities in Kuwait being made available for Canadian operations.
On top of the fighter jets and personnel to be supplied by the base in Cold Lake, additional support will be presented by both 8 Wing Trenton in Ontario and 14 Wing Greenwood in Nova Scotia.
Although the motion received the support of Conservative incumbents and two independent seats, it was met with widespread criticism from the Liberals, NDP and Bloc Quebecois, with NDP leader Tom Mulcair accusing Harper of “plunging Canada into a prolonged war without a credible plan.”
“Time and again, Conservatives have refused to answer clear questions and (have) been evasive on critical details of this mission,” Mulcair said. “It is impossible to have confidence in the judgment of a prime minister who sends Canada into an unclear mission for an unspecified period, in an undefined area, with uncertain utility.”
“Not only (does this see us launch ourselves into an unnecessary conflict in Iraq), it also opens the door to Canadian involvement in Syria's bloody civil war,” Mulcair added.
Liberal leader Justin Trudeau acknowledged that while he considers ISIS a threat to “regional and global security” he believed there were several alternatives the federal government should consider before jumping into another war.
“Certainly the Liberal party is in support of our troops and anyone we are sending into harm's way,” said president of the Lakeland Liberal Association Mark Watson. “We can't allow this kind of barbarity to flourish. We have to take a stand on it.”
Liberals believe Prime Minister Stephen Harper has not been completely clear and honest about the mission. “There is a sense that Mr. Harper is not showing all his cards when dealing with Canadians on all this,” said Watson. Liberals would have been more supportive of a clear and established timeline for Canada's involvement.
Speaking to the Nouvelle last week, local Conservative MP Brian Storseth admitted that while it was a difficult decision to vote to join the war against ISIS, it had to be made.
“This was a very somber moment in the House of Commons, any time you end up voting to send men and women, some of whom you know, to war. It's difficult,” Storseth said. “At the end of the day though, you just have to look at what has transpired over the past six to eight months in what is considered the Middle East between Iraq, Syria and Turkey.”
He added, “What we have here is not just a typical terrorist organization, this is a brutal group of cult-like individuals who are set to expand their territory to create a state that would help fund international terror organizations in countries such as Canada and the United States.
“The way we see it is that this is a matter of national security. This organization has already stated that Canada and its allies would be targets, long before we ever looked at deploying men and women to counteract these guys.”
Storseth was keen to point out the differences between this mission and the stance Canada took on the war in Afghanistan, stating this mission presents a unique opportunity for the world to address a growing problem, likening it to “stopping al-Qaeda at the founding of al-Qaeda.”
With several men and women from Cold Lake having already received their orders for overseas posting, Storseth was keen to point out Canada was in good hands, claiming those on the base are some of the “best trained” personnel in the world.
“This won't be the first deployment our guys here in Cold Lake have made in combat missions where they're giving air support,” Storseth said. “We had guys in Libya, we had guys in Afghanistan. The fact of the matter is, these men and women stationed in Cold Lake are some of the best trained in the world.”
He added, “One thing I'd like to say at this time is that all of us in this area have a responsibility to not forget about the families of these individuals and what they're going through at the moment. We need to gather around as a community and help support them while their (husbands and wives) are overseas (protecting our country).”
Public Affairs for 4 Wing Cold Lake would not provide any further details with regards to the deployment when contacted by the Nouvelle last week.
