In less than a week, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has gone from supporting US actions against Iran to raising the issue that the US and Israel “acted without involving the United Nations or without consultation with allies, including Canada,” before ruling out Canadian military participation in the conflict on Wednesday.
“My own reading is that he is influenced by public opinion and his understanding of Canada’s national interests and where they lie, and specifically the relationship with the United States at its core. His first statement was very supportive of the US-Israeli attack and then he walked back two days later when he received a lot of pushback because there was no reference to Canada’s support for international law, the rules-based order and the United Nations.”
Smoke rises over Tehran, Iran, on March 2, 2026, after explosions were reported in the city during the joint US-Israeli operation against Iran. (Contributor/Getty Images)
Asked whether Canada would join the U.S. military against Iran during its visit to Australia on Wednesday, Carney told reporters that “one can never categorically rule out participation” and that Canada “will support our allies, when that makes sense.”
However, former NATO commander and retired Canadian Major General David Fraser told CTV News Channel that it is “unlikely” that Canada would become involved in the US-Israeli war against Iran unless a member state, such as Turkey, were to call for assistance under Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty.
Carney’s latest comments indicate the Canadian prime minister’s desire to ensure that “it does not create a deeper rift with the United States than already exists,” Hashemi said.
Melissa Lantsman, deputy leader of Canada’s Conservative Party, summarized the prime minister’s changing position on the US-Israeli attacks on Iran in a post on
Her colleague Michael Chong, the Conservative shadow foreign minister, told Canadian broadcaster CTV that “supporting the airstrikes and at the same time calling for a break from those attacks” is “an inherent contradiction.”
NATO Chief Praises TRUMP’s Iran Strikes, Says Key Allies ‘ALL FOR ONE, ONE FOR ALL’
U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on May 6, 2025. (Jim Watson/AFP)
Carney has also faced resistance from the political left.
After the airstrikes against Iran began, Alexandre Boulerice, foreign affairs critic for the New Democratic Party of Canada, said in a statement that his party “strongly condemns the American and Israeli bombing of Iran” and “deplores the Carney administration’s decision to blindly support this dangerous undertaking by Israel and the administration of Donald Trump. We want Canada to be a voice for diplomacy, peace and international law.”
During his Australian tour this week, the Prime Minister said that “hegemons are increasingly acting without restraint or respect for international norms or laws, while others suffer the consequences.”
The US Central Command released a video on Thursday, March 5, 2026, showing US aircraft taking off during Operation Epic Fury against Iran. (CENTCOM)
He also said that Canada “supports efforts to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and to prevent its regime from further threatening international peace and security,” but noted that Canada “[s] We regret this position because the current conflict is yet another example of the failure of the international order.”
Carney said that “Canada calls for a rapid de-escalation of hostilities and stands ready to help achieve this goal.”
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At a security and defense conference in Ottawa also this week, Foreign Minister Anita Anand said Canada “calls on all parties to respect the rules of international engagement” and that “international law binds all parties” in the Middle East conflict.
The results of an Angus Reid Institute poll involving 1,619 respondents and released Tuesday found that 49% of Canadians opposed U.S.-Israeli airstrikes on Iran, while 34% were in favor.
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