Carney says his stance on Iran war shifted as Trump’s goals ‘evolved’

Canada’s initial position supporting Washington’s war in Iran shifted over the subsequent days as U.S. President Donald Trump’s objectives became more clear, Prime Minister Mark Carney told The Canadian Press.

“The scale of what the objectives were, or the clarity about what the objectives were, were not there at the start and have arguably evolved over time,” Carney said in a Friday interview.

On Feb. 28, the day the U.S. war on Iran began, Carney expressed unequivocal support for the action. A few days later he expressed regret that Washington did not consult the United Nations on a conflict that he said likely violates international law.

The shift prompted widespread criticism from multiple quarters. Some of Iran’s opponents argued that Carney had watered down a principled stance, while some advocates for international law said Carney was contradicting his speech at Davos about rejecting hegemonic behaviour by great powers.

“Our first comment was within hours of it beginning,” Carney said in his West Block office Friday.

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Ottawa has long held the view that Iran is “the largest exporter of terror, state-sponsored terror, in the world. It’s murdered hundreds of Canadians,” Carney said. He added the Iranian regime is already causing suffering around the world and must not be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons.

“From the perspective of an action, that we’re going to reduce that, we’re supportive of those objectives,” Carney said.

“Now, there’s objectives and there’s how you pursue those objectives, and the clarity was around how they were being pursued and the extent to which they were consistent with international law.”

While Canada has stayed out of the conflict so far, the prime minister has said Ottawa might send support to restore shipping access in the Strait of Hormuz if there is a functional ceasefire. Carney’s government is seeking investment from Gulf countries.

Carney is set to be in Armenia this weekend for the European Political Community summit, which primarily focuses on how countries from Iceland to Azerbaijan co-ordinate on politics, security and infrastructure in the wake of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Carney said “one of the reasons” he is going to the summit as the only non-European leader is that he will join colleagues who “have banded together to provide assistance once a durable ceasefire is established.”

Carney said that, despite Washington’s claims that it has paused the conflict, there is not a “durable” ceasefire.

“We’re not in that position now, to be absolutely clear,” he said.