No matter what the reasons that the Canadian government gives, the proposed expansion of the current Iraq mission to Syria has all kinds of serious consequences. Simply stating that Canada is following the American lead provides little in the way of justification. Syria is a bigger mess than even Iraq. Let’s recap for a moment. The Syrian uprising, part of the so-called Arab Spring, originally involved opposition groups to the current Syrian government under its dictator Bashar al-Assad. The Americans didn’t step into this internal war, preferring to wait and see. However, things didn’t go well for Assad, making him commit even more atrocities against his own people, including the use of chemical weapons. Still, the Americans didn’t step in. Then along came ISIL or ISIS, a major radical group who began to make territorial gains in Syria and eventually into Iraq. So now, the Americans, no longer knowing who to support militarily in Syria, decide to go after the most radical group — ISIL.
Subsequently, the Iraqi government and security forces couldn’t stop ISIL’s advances inside Iraq, threatening to bring down Iraq’s American-supported and primarily Shia-backed government. ISIL found support among the Sunni population in Iraq who felt persecuted by the Shia regime, and have faced atrocities by Shia security forces and local militia. Enter Iran, whose military guard began to support the Shia militias in Iraq, who in turn appeared better able to defend against ISIL than Iraq’s government forces. Let’s not forget about the Kurdish forces fighting ISIL in northern Iraq, and who would still like to have more independence from Baghdad. At this point, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi called on the U.S. to provide military support in the form of air strikes against ISIL and military advisors to Iraqi forces on the ground.
Six months ago, Canada entered the American-led campaign along with some other European and Arab countries. Remember, this is not a NATO endorsed campaign. Canada’s token contribution deployed several dozen special forces troops to northern Iraq, six fighter jets, two surveillance aircraft, a refuelling plane and around 600 support personnel based in Kuwait. So far, Canada has had one casualty and three injured by Kurdish friendly fire. Have air strikes really accomplished much? ISIL’s advancements have to date been slowed, but most military experts believe that the war against ISIL can only be won on the ground. In the case of the Syrian campaign, the results of air strikes are even less convincing.
Yes, ISIL has made some vague propaganda threats against Canadians, has committed atrocities, and a few Canadians have even gone to join ISIL in Syria, along with other foreign combatants. However, is there really a serious threat to the homeland from ISIL? Or is this just political maneuvering on the part of the Canadian and American governments to justify their military actions in the region? What are the governments’ exit strategies? Indications are that the Iraqis and Syrians could be at war for years. Neither the current Iraqi nor the Syrian regime appears to be able to deal with this mess. Do the Canadian and American governments really believe that they can resolve the disputes without further bloodshed and atrocities? These are real questions and consequences that need to be further explored before both countries begin to witness ever-growing “mission creep”. Unfortunately, the majority of Canadians and Americans don’t really understand the complexities of the situation to adequately address these questions. Sorry, but it’s the truth.
FROLITICKS 