January 27, 2006 :: UPI :: Analysis
Stephen Harper’s recent Conservative Party victory in Canada will have significant consequences for hemispheric ballistic missile defense and long-term U.S.-Canadian relations, writes Martin Sieff for the UPI news agency. Sieff argues that it was Harper’s decision to break the longstanding political consensus in Canada to steer clear of BMD that gave him a significant boost in what turned out to be a tight race, and predicts Harper will find it much easier to push ahead with BMD cooperation with Washington, in contrast to domestic issues. To begin with, the debate during the election campaign indicated that BMD is relatively popular with the Canadian public. More importantly, initial cooperation with the U.S. on BMD will not cost the Canadian taxpayer one cent under the terms that President Bush offered Prime Minister Martin last February. Sieff believes that, by joining hands with the U.S. on BMD, Stephen Harper will resurrect “the tremendous tradition of strategic cooperation between the United States and Canada that guaranteed hemispheric defense through World War II and the long decades of the Cold War.” He adds Canada to a growing list of nations, including Japan and Poland, in which BMD has become a “vote winner,” support for which has characterized victorious and resurgent conservative parties.
(Article)
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