ISIS fight: Canada 'doing its share' in humanitarian aid, Nicholson says

Foreign Affairs Minister Rob Nicholson is defending the government against criticism that it hasn't put enough emphasis on humanitarian and diplomatic measures in its mission to Iraq.

"We are there to support the people of that area," the minister told reporters on Monday.

"We're the sixth largest single-country donor to Syria and the fifth-largest to Iraq."

Nicholson added he was "very impressed" by what he saw during a recent visit to Erbil.

"We don't stand on the sidelines when it comes to assistance, and we will continue that," he said.

"Canada is doing its share, and will continue to do its share."

The questions came after Nicholson summoned reporters to his departmental headquarters for a briefing on what Canada has accomplished so far in the "global fight" against ISIS.

'Legal justification'

Both the New Democrats and the Liberals have indicated they will vote against the motion, in part because they believe Canada should focus its efforts on humanitarian and diplomatic measures.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper laid out his proposal Tuesday to extend the current combat mission until March 31, 2016 during a speech to the House.

Perhaps more controversially, however, he also wants to give the Canadian Armed Forces authorization to mount airstrikes in Syria.

Foreign Affairs Minister Rob Nicholson discusses the government's proposal to expand and extend Canada's mission against ISIS at a press briefing on Wednesday. (CBC)

In response to questions on the legal justification for expanding the front against ISIS onto Syrian territory, Nicholson stressed that Canada's position on the ongoing conflict in Syria hasn't changed.

"The Assad regime is a state sponsor of terrorism, and we have certainly opposed the brutality of that regime," he said.

"That being said, we, along with the United States, recognize that if a country is unwilling … or unable to prevent [ISIS] from staging operations and conducting attacks into Iraq, that we have a legal justification to degrade [ISIS].

Canada's fight "is against [ISIS]," he reminded reporters.

"Our fight is against [ISIS] in Iraq and Syria. We are fighting [ISIS] at home. That is our mission, and this is a … step in the right direction, I believe."

'No Iraq-Syria border'

In an interview on CBC News Network on Wednesday morning, Defence Minister Jason Kenney told Heather Hiscox that, "as far as ISIS is concerned, there is no Iraq-Syria border."

But he stressed that Canada has "no interest in getting involved in the Syrian civil war, in any shape or form."

Kenney on ISIS mission8:31

Kenney was initially slated to appear alongside Nicholson at the briefing, but his lectern was removed from the stage shortly before the briefing was set to begin.

According to his office, "something came up," although a spokeswoman said he will continue to be available to the media "as he has been."

Later today, senior government officials will brief opposition MPs during a closed-door session on Parliament Hill.

The motion is scheduled to be debated on Thursday and will go to a vote next week.

Vote not required

Although the prime minister has made it a hallmark of his government to give MPs the opportunity to debate and vote on proposed military missions, parliamentary consent is not actually required to deploy Canadian troops. That authority rests exclusively with the executive, which exercises it on behalf of the Crown.

In an essay published last fall, University of Ottawa professor and defence expert Philippe Lagassé noted that such votes can be seen as a "courtesy" extended to MPs by the executive.

"The votes allow MPs to express themselves on a matter of national importance," he pointed out.

"In addition, they can be seen as a means of assuring the military that their mission has the support of the elected house of Parliament, and the votes add an aura of democratic legitimacy to controversial policy decisions."

But it can also provide political cover for the governing party, he adds.

"By laundering these decisions through the House, the government gives the impression that the Commons shares responsibility for the deployment."

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