Canada’S Pathetic Foreign Policy

One is left to wonder if the same Richard Armitage did not visit Canada about the same time and deliver the same threat. For even though it is reported in the Globe and Mail, Monday October 8th, that in the upcoming Speech from the Throne our esteemed leader wants “to cast a larger shadow on the world’s stage” Canada’s foreign policy is a shambles and the Department of Foreign Affairs(DFA) is being systematically dismantled. Rather than casting a larger shadow on the world stage Canada’s foreign policy is a rapidly wilting violet. It might be called the deflowering of our nationhood or everybody’s least favourite parlor game DEEP INTEGRATION or; the subject nobody wants talk about-least of all our stupefied political elites. Our esteemed leader is very adept at strutting on the world’s stage rubbing shoulders with leaders of the G8 and bragging about our being an “energy superpower” and when in Australia taking pot shots at Her Majesty’s loyal opposition; but the only shadow being cast is American hegemony on an arid Canadian political landscape populated by errand boys and toadies. According to the Globe and Mail article the DFA is suffering something of an “existential crisis.” Not only has it been suffering a series of ongoing budget cuts but according to recent retirees from the department the big chill is on. The PMO has imposed a communications crackdown. The department is described as being in a “locked down environment” and when information is leaked out against the wishes of the PMO “witch hunts” are conducted. Globe and Mail reporter Mark MacKinnon describes DFA diplomats as being “absolutely terrified,” unwilling to speak even off the record. Where other countries are encouraging a more open door policy; “transinformational policy” Canada is going in exactly the opposite direction. If a country is committed to Deep Integration there is of course no need for the DFA. Canada’s Department of Defence is well down the road to Deep Integration as Rambo Rick(kill those “scumbags”) Hillier drops by Washington on a regular Basis for his marching orders, as does the present Minister of Defence and former DFA minister Peter MacKay. Thanks to the Independent’s Robert Fisk we find out that the former Minister of Defence, Gordon O’Connor, now demoted to Veteran’s Affairs, was writing fan mail to former US Secretary of Defence, Donald Rumsfeld, when by any sane standard Rumsfeld was a disaster. He tried to win Iraq on the cheap by sending in far too few troops with no planning for the post invasion period. It was also on Rumsfeld’s watch the US reverted to torture. He alone is one of the chief reasons Iraq is and has been an utter fiasco. The newly minted minister for the DFA is none other than Maxime Bernier. Currently on tour in Afghanistan he has had a chance to dress up like a soldier and bagged 13 photo opportunities- which appears to be the new standard for measuring ministerial competence. He has boldly claimed that the Kandahar area is secure when every other security analyst, starting with the UN, says otherwise. Obviously Bernier is just a whirling dervish who has been told to spin, spin, spin. Bernier is accompanied by MP Bev Oda whose job it is to pass out chocolate treats to Canada’s finest. In meeting with Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai Bernier pronounced that the Taliban must renounce violence as a pre-condition for a negotiated peace. Bernier seems oblivious to the fact it was the US who started the war six years ago and they have been using the country as a shooting gallery ever since, and the US is undoubtedly the greatest deterrent to peace. Bernier, along with his other NATO colleagues, might want to consider the notion that the war on terror is largely a scam to justify US expansionism. The US is the international bullyboy. Bullying whether it happens person to person or country to country there can only be one response to it and that is to challenge it, otherwise the tyranny only worsens. The US is committed to serial warfare. It has started wars in Afghanistan and Iraq both are stalemated, both beg for peaceful resolutions but non is forthcoming. Even now the Afghanistan war has expanded into Pakistan as Taliban and Pakistani troops( goaded on by the US) are fighting it out. All the while the US contemplates a nuclear attack on Iran. Canada should be part of a cadre of countries that challenges the US belligerence and its self-proclaimed right to wage war where ever and when ever it wishes. If the US remains unchallenged Armitage’s B -52 gunboat diplomacy might just become the norm on a whole range of issues as the US uses its enormous military capability as enforcer-Don’t think for a minute Missile Defence is for defence. This is not a time for errand boys, toadies and Deep Integration. It is time for real diplomats doing real work, advancing proactive solutions and reiterating that international laws and conventions must be respected. Meanwhile, our esteemed leader vaingloriously delivers an ultimatum to the hapless opposition parties warning them that every item in the Speech from the Throne will be a confidence vote and if they dare oppose him there will be an election. In the mean time he leads the country to wreck and ruin and the much cherished Deep Integration proceeds unabated in a sea of indifference. Armitage didn’t have to threaten Canada. Official Ottawa is afraid of its own shadow and blunders on in its stupefied state while the country’s civil society is just a little too civil. [Proofreader’s note: this article was edited for spelling and typos on October 11, 2007]