Canada suspended 25 export permits for military goods and technology to Turkey last October and four more in November.
The suspension came following reports that Canadian-made optical and target acquisition systems were being used by Azerbaijan in its military offensive against Armenian forces in the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister Marc Garneau said : "Canadian technology was diverted to Azerbaijan without Ottawa's consent and was used in fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh last fall"
"Following this review, which found credible evidence that Canadian technology exported to Turkey was used in Nagorno-Karabakh, today I am announcing the cancellation of permits that were suspended in the fall of 2020," Garneau said in a statement.
Ottawa and Ankara "need to initiate a dialogue mechanism between Canadian and Turkish officials to build mutual confidence and greater cooperation on export permits to ensure consistency with end-use assurances before any further permits for military goods and technology are issued," Garneau added.
Canada suspended the issuance of new export permits to Turkey in October of 2019, following Ankara's military incursion into Kurdish-controlled areas of northeastern Syria.
But the Liberal government suddenly reversed its decision and signed off on export permits for WESCAM sensors following a phone call between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in late April of 2020.
The opposition has accused the Liberal government of buckling under lobbying pressure from the Turkish government and has called in parliamentary hearings into the matter.
The Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development will hold another meeting to look into the decision to grant arms export licenses to Turkey.
No comments:
Post a Comment