Trudeau commits to larger training role for Canadians

Thestar.com
Nov. 17, 2015
By Bruce Campion-Smith

View video link: http://bcove.me/m383m9db

As Canadian fighter jets struck Islamic State positions in Iraq, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed that Canada’s anti-terror fight will change with the deployment of more troops to help train local fighters to battle extremists on the ground.

Trudeau confirmed Tuesday what he has been hinting at for several days - that a beefed-up training mission will mark the core of Canada’s changing contribution to the coalition fight against extremists in Iraq and Syria.

But the prime minister also warned that the battle against the terrorists will “not be a short engagement.”

The news came on the same day that two CF-18 fighters hit three ISIL positions near Ramadi using precision-guided munitions. In all, Canadian fighters have struck nine times in the last week, including taking part in a broader offensive on Nov. 12 to cut off an ISIL supply line near Sinjar, Iraq.

Trudeau has made clear this week that the Liberals intend to stick to their election pledge to end the yearlong combat mission by CF-18s over Iraq and Syria, even as Canada’s allies ramp up their air assaults in the wake of the Paris terror attacks.

Instead, Canada will announce that it will commit more soldiers to the training role to enable local militia to take the fight to the extremists and reclaim territory in Iraq lost to ISIL forces.

The prime minister also reiterated his government’s commitment to bring in 25,000 Syrian refugees by Jan. 1, despite provincial and municipal voices expressing concern that the short timetable could compromise security.

Talking to reporters on board a military Airbus en route to the Philippines, Trudeau gave a rough outline of what the new military mission will look like. He said it is certain to involve more than the 69 Canadian troops already on the ground in northern Iraq.

That operation, launched more than a year ago, is a non-combat role for Canadians to train peshmerga forces.

“We committed throughout the campaign, and I’ve committed repeatedly to my allies, that we were going to do more on the training front and, obviously, that means more than just 69 trainers,” Trudeau said.

But just how many more, their exact mission and the timing of the new, larger deployment are all questions that are being looked at, he said.

“We’re looking at a number of options. We’re looking at how we can best be helpful,” Trudeau told journalists.

“Canada has extraordinary Canadian Forces with a wide range of abilities ... but training is something we do very, very well,” he said.

Trudeau has been sensitive to any perception that by withdrawing its fighter jets, Canada would be walking away from the coalition fight against ISIL.

That concern was underscored this week as world leaders who gathered at the G20 summit showed a collective resolve to step up their terror fight in the wake of Friday’s deadly attacks in Paris.

Trudeau said Canada is committed to do “more than its part” in that battle and pledged that would be a “meaningful” role.

“The bottom line is how can Canada best be a strong and positive contributor to the ... continuing mission” against ISIL, he said.

“There’s no question that this is not going to be a short engagement,” Trudeau said, adding that no one solution alone - diplomatic or military - will resolve the ISIL crisis.

“It’s a lot of people working together in different ways to create stability and security in an area that has been unstable and insecure for a very long time,” Trudeau said.

Trudeau is expected to talk about the shape of that new mission during a meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama this week at the APEC summit being held in the Philippines.

Trudeau also sought to reassure Canadians who are concerned about security in the influx of 25,000 Syrian refugees that will come to Canada in the coming weeks.

“I have said from the very beginning that security has always been at the very core of what we are planning to do on refugees,” Trudeau said.

Trudeau was responding to Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall who earlier had called on Ottawa to “suspend” the plan, concerned that the “rushed” resettlement plan could compromise security.

But the prime minister said that security is an “integral” part of his government’s refugee plan.

“It didn’t take the tragedies of Paris for us to suddenly realize that security is important,” Trudeau said.

“We’ve known for a long time and we continue to be very much committed in keeping Canadians safe while we do the right thing to engage responsibly with the humanitarian crisis,” he said.

Trudeau spoke to reporters as his Royal Canadian Air Force Airbus aircraft jetted over the Bay of Bengal en route to Manila from Turkey, where the prime minister attended the G20 summit.