Rob Nicholson Says Canada’s Commitment To Iraq Will Be Similar To Afghanistan
OTTAWA — Canada could be active in Iraq for the next decade as the war against ISIL continues and the region needs rebuilding, Canada’s foreign affairs minister suggested Thursday.
“We’re in this for the longer term to make sure that we do what we can to help,” Rob Nicholson told reporters during a phone call from Amman, Jordan, after completing a secret trip to the region.
“It’s similar to what we did in Afghanistan for instance,” he elaborated when asked by The Huffington Post Canada. “We were in Afghanistan, but we indicated that we would continue our assistance, and we have in Afghanistan.”
Canada’s military mission in Afghanistan lasted 12 years butdevelopment assistance has continuedpast the Canadian Forces’ pullout in 2014.
“It’s not just the military, it has to be a bigger picture in terms of what the solutions are,” Nicholson said, referring to continued humanitarian assistance. Canada has so far pledged$100 million to Iraq in humanitarian stabilization and security programming, he said.
“And this is going to continue. We’ve made that very clear.”
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