Mark Carney, the prime minister of Canada, stated on Thursday that he could not completely rule out his nation’s military involvement in the intensifying conflict in the Middle East.
The growing conflict in the Middle East, which was triggered by a huge US-Israeli strike on Iran that murdered its supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has overshadowed Carney’s visit to Australia this week.
In Canberra, Carney was asked if there was a scenario in which Canada might intervene when speaking with local colleague Anthony Albanese.
He emphasized that the question was “hypothetical” and stated, “One can never categorically rule out participation.”
Carney declared, “We will always defend Canadians and we will stand by our allies.”
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The US-Israeli strikes on Iran, according to Carney, were “inconsistent with international law.”
He does, however, support efforts to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, a stance that Canada adopts “with regret” because it is “another example of the failure of the international order.”
On Thursday, the Canadian leader reaffirmed his demand that the violence be “de-escalated.”
Carney is traveling as part of a multi-national tour of the Asia-Pacific region with the goal of lessening dependency on the US as a safeguard against what he has called a declining US-led international order.
The tour’s Australia leg aims to attract investment and strengthen relationships with a “middle power” partner who shares similar values.
“Middle power” rallying cry: He called on “middle powers” to cooperate in an increasingly dominant global order on Thursday morning in Australia’s parliament.
According to him, countries like Australia and Canada have to decide whether to collaborate to help draft the “new rules” of the international order or let powerful nations do it for them.
Middle powers cannot just erect greater barriers and hide behind them in this bright new world. We have to cooperate,” he stated.
The former central banker continued, “Great powers can compel, but compulsion comes with costs, both reputational and financial.”
Additionally, the Canadian leader stated that the two nations would pool their enormous combined rare earth material resources as “strategic collaborators.”
Additionally, he described renewed collaboration in fields ranging from artificial intelligence to defense.
He addressed parliament, saying, “We know we must work with others who share our values to build solid capabilities.”
He cautioned that if they didn’t, they might end themselves “caught between the hyperscalers and the hegemons.”
The US President Donald Trump, who has regularly threatened to conquer Canada and imposed exorbitant tariffs on the nation, has constantly argued with the Canadian leader.
Carney cautioned that the US-led global system of governance was going through “a rupture” in an address to political and financial leaders at the World Economic Forum in January.
