Carney Says US Action in Iran Appears ‘Inconsistent’ With International Law, Calls for De-escalation

Prime Minister Mark Carney says that while Ottawa supports “neutralizing” the threat of Iran’s regime, it does not agree with how the United States and Israel have conducted the war and called for a rapid de-escalation of hostilities on all sides.

Carney had previously spoken more directly in support of the U.S. strike, saying shortly after it was launched on Feb. 28 that, “Canada supports the United States acting to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and to prevent its regime from further threatening international peace and security.”

Carney made his latest comments on Iran at a March 4 press conference in Sydney, Australia. He said that Canada was not informed ahead of time or asked to participate in the military operation, and that the operation appears to be “inconsistent” with international laws of war.

“Canada has long seen Iran as the principal source of instability and terror in the Middle East,” Carney said, but “the United States and Israel have acted without engaging the United Nations or consulting allies, including Canada.”

Israel and the United States launched air strikes on Iran Feb. 28 following the failure of multiple rounds of diplomatic talks on Iran’s nuclear programs. Iranian regime leader Ali Khamenei was killed on the first day of the strikes.

U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said on March 2 that the goal of the joint U.S.–Israeli military operation is to “destroy the missile threat, destroy the navy, no nukes.”

Canada, Israel, and the United States say regional proxy terrorist groups sponsored by Iran across the Middle East have killed thousands, and are preventing peace and stability across the region.

“This is a regime that is the biggest exporter of terror in the world, that has for decades terrorized the Middle East, that has killed scores of Canadians,” Carney said in terms of Canada’s perspective on Iran’s regime.

U.S. President Donald Trump has said that over 32,000 Iranians were killed in protests that began in late December in Iran against the regime.

Military Operation

Trump has said the U.S. and Israeli military operation in Iran could last “weeks” and will likely lead to more U.S. casualties. The United States currently says six members of the U.S. military have been killed in the military operation against Iran’s regime.

Carney’s Feb. 28 statement of support for U.S. and Israeli strikes on the Iranian regime broke with most European allies who have not supported the military intervention.

Speaking March 3, Carney said that while Canada does still support the aim of “neutralizing” the Iranian regime, the U.S. and Israeli intervention appears to have been launched against international law.

“We were not informed in advance, we were not asked to participate,” he said. “Prima facie, it appears that these actions are inconsistent with international law.”

Carney added that Canada’s objective going forward is for all sides in the conflict to “de-escalate” and he said Canada is ready to help in achieving that. Carney did not specify how Canada might work to achieve de-escalation.

Trump said March 3 that Iranian leadership following the death of Khamenei want to negotiate but that it’s now “too late.”

“Their air defense, Air Force, Navy, and Leadership is gone. They want to talk. I said ‘Too Late!’” Trump posted on Truth Social.

Rules of Engagement

Carney said March 3 that he supported Washington’s strikes on Iran “with regret” because they were the sign of a failure of the rules-based international order. He added that Canada also has concerns about all parties upholding rules of engagement on the battlefield.

“We condemn the strikes carried out by Iran on civilians and civilian infrastructure across the Middle East, and we implore all parties, including the United States and Israel, to respect the rules of international engagement,” he said.

Iran has launched missiles and drones toward Israel and Gulf nations hosting American military bases.

The United States says six of its service members were killed after their tactical operations centre in Kuwait was hit by a missile, with Kuwait’s Ministry of Defense saying March 2 that it had detected and intercepted 178 ballistic missiles and 384 drones from Iran.

So far, 787 Iranians have been killed in the Israeli and U.S. strikes, according to the Iranian Red Crescent Society, though the group has not released a breakdown between civilians and military personnel killed. The Epoch Times could not independently verify the figures.

Hegseth said on March 2 that the United States won’t be bound by “stupid rules of engagement.”

“No stupid rules of engagement, no nation-building quagmire, no democracy building exercise, no politically correct wars,” he said. “We fight to win, and we don’t waste time or lives.”

Hegseth also criticized “so-called international institutions,” and said Israel is a “capable partner,” instead of America’s traditional allies who “wring their hands and clutch their pearls, hemming and hawing about the use of force.”

Response

Global Affairs Canada (GAC) said March 3 that about 97,000 Canadians in the Middle East are registered with it, and that it is not aware of any killed or injured Canadians as a result of the conflict. GAC has warned Canadians to avoid any travel to Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Gaza, Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar, Syria, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, who is currently on his first official trip abroad, said Feb. 28 that his party supports “the United States, Israel, and our allies across the Gulf to defend their sovereignty and dismantle the clerical military dictatorship of Iran.”

“It orchestrated the attacks of October 7, 2023, murdered Canadian passengers on Flight PS752, sought to kill prominent Canadian leaders, and ruthlessly targets Canadians of Jewish and Iranian descent. It has shown no good faith in negotiations to change course,” Poilievre said in a Feb. 28 Conservative Party release.

“That is why Conservatives support the courageous people of Iran in toppling this terror regime and reclaiming their destiny after 47 years of the regime’s occupation. Conservatives support a democratic, free and permanently denuclearised Iran that lives in peace and security with its neighbours.”

There has also been internal disagreement within the Liberal Party about what position to take with regard to the strikes on Iran, with Liberal MP Will Greaves saying this past weekend that Carney should not be supporting the “unilateral and illegal use of military force” against Iran.

NDP Interim Leader Don Davies said Feb. 28 that the Iran war “violates UN rules Canada has agreed to uphold.”