Tankers near the Strait of Hormuz, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance on March 11. U.S. President Trump wants allies to send assistance to the strait, where shipping has been disrupted during the conflict with Iran.Stringer/Reuters
Canada’s focus in the Middle East is safeguarding and helping Canadians in the region and a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, two senior cabinet ministers said Tuesday.
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said Iran’s blockade of the key shipping route is in violation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and she is seeking to work with Gulf allies to uphold the right of ships from all countries to pass through.
Meanwhile, Defence Minister David McGuinty said Canada is evaluating the situation “hour by hour,” but does not intend to join the U.S. and Israel’s led offensive against Iran.
Iran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil is transported, is sparking concerns about tightening energy supplies – unnerving the world economy.
Iran has said the waterway technically remains open – just not for the United States, Israel and their allies.
The Canadian Press
Ms. Anand said the practical impact of the closing is that countries are unable to receive energy, fertilizer and other goods in the food supply chain.
“Ships from all countries have the right to pass through,” she said.
“This is a very important point that I’m working with countries from the Gulf region and around the world on and I will be seeking support from them on this very key point of international law.”
Ms. Anand said there’s been no conversation among NATO for the alliance to answer U.S. President Donald Trump’s request for their help to reopen the channel.
Ms. Anand said the principles of collective defence and deterrence, which are central to NATO, are triggered by the alliance as a whole, not one country.
“To our knowledge a request has not been made to NATO for the type of assistance that is being requested,” she said.
Canada stands with NATO allies in terms of the triggering mechanism, she said.
“At this point, it’s important to remember that those conversations among NATO allies have not occurred.”
The war in the Middle East already has one big winner: Russia
Meanwhile, Defence Minister McGuinty said Canada is watching what he called a very “volatile” situation.
“We’re very, very careful in terms of taking steps in any direction,” he told reporters after an unrelated announcement in Brampton, Ont., Tuesday.
“But for us, from the beginning, it was clear that joining this in terms of the prosecution of the war offensively was not going to occur.”
Mr. McGuinty has not ruled out Canada helping other states in the region, but right now, members of the Canadian Armed Forces stationed in the Middle East are not involved in the conflict.
He said that for security reasons, he could not reveal any further details about what they are doing.
“It’s very important that we, first of all, focus on Canadians in the region who want to leave that region,” he said.
“Secondly, it’s very important for me, as Minister of Defence to make sure that we keep our forces out of harm’s way.”
He also pushed back on Conservative critics who said the government ought to have disclosed that some of those forces were on a military base in Kuwait struck by Iran.
The newspaper La Presse has reported the Canadian section at the Ali Al-salem Air Base appeared to be damaged in a March 1 attack, based on an analysis of satellite imagery. No Canadian military members were injured, the military said.
Canada has an operational support hub at the airbase, which also hosts the U.S. Air Force.
“With all due respect to the Conservative Party, we will take our lead from the operational experts in the Canadian Armed Forces, who have a policy of being very careful about the security of our Canadian Armed Forces on the ground,” Mr. McGuinty said.
With reports from The Canadian Press and the Associated Press
Editor’s note: This article has been updated to correct the name of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.