Don’t be distracted by the decision of the Justin Trudeau government to remove 6 CF18 fighter jets from Iraq, or to allow 25,000 Syrian refugees to come to Canada.
In addition to sending hundreds more troops to the Middle East, and on top of permitting Canadian merchants of death to sell $5 billion in military vehicles to Saudi Arabia, Ottawa is considering another "training mission", this time in Libya, according to Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan. This would involve troops on the ground, combat troops.
Western forces are preparing for a military intervention in the North African country. Libya was laid waste by NATO bombing and the regime-change war that eventually toppled Muammar Gaddafi.
The resulting political vacuum enabled groups like Daesh (ISIL) and Boko Haram to take advantage, and to seize territory.
In life there aren’t many certainties. But here’s one. Under capitalism there is plenty of money to be made by weapons producers for conflicts new, and wars ongoing.
Justin Trudeau seems to think that anti-war public opinion will be appeased by cosmetic changes to Canadian military intervention – even as he actually steps up involvement in imperialist adventures overseas.
Ottawa wants a seat at the table when and where African and Asian concessions will in future be awarded to western powers involved in the scramble for resources. There is nothing humanitarian or defensive about this greedy gambit.