A new approach to foreign policy begins!

REINSTATE “HONEST BROKER” ROLE IN MIDDLE EAST, WRITES FM STEPHANE DION

On the same day that he was sworn in as Canada’s Foreign Minister, Stéphane Dion penned an article for iPolitics where he took on the thorny issue of Canada’s relations with Israel. He argued that Canada can help Israel more by returning to its honest broker role and improving its relations with other Middle East nations than by continuing the policies of former Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government. For the full article, see “Dion: Canada to return to ‘honest broker’ role in Middle East,” iPolitics, 4 November 2015.

 

DIPLOMACY WILL BE A CENTRAL POLICY TOOL FOR CANADA, WRITES PM JUSTIN TRUDEAU

“Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has unshackled his top diplomats.”

So begins an article by Mike Blanchfield entitled “Trudeau relaxes Conservative control of diplomats, urges them to engage” (Canadian Press, 5 November 2015). In a letter sent Wednesday to Canada’s top diplomats around the world, PM Trudeau describes a “new era” for Canada’s international engagement in which they have a “critical role” to play. This represents a stark reversal of the strict message control that the Harper Conservative government imposed on even its most seasoned diplomats over much of the past decade.

For the full article, see “Trudeau relaxes Conservative control of diplomats, urges them to engage.” (Canadian Press, 5 November 2015).

To read more about the Liberal Party platform on foreign, defence, and security policy, click here and go to Chapter V: Security and Opporunity.