Arising during the Cold War, and designed by Lester Pearson, peacekeeping has become entrenched as one of the pillars of Canadian foreign policy and it has become a symbol of Canadian identity. In recent years, as our military actions have deviated from this ideal, it has become an issue of contention within elections, as Canadians struggled to reconcile themselves with these policy decisions. Today, Canada has been looking for a new means to apply this concept, as the global landscape has changed.
At its core, the reasoning for peacekeeping was to stop localized disputes and wars from creating a global confrontation that would embroil Canada in a full-scale war. During the Cold War, the fear was that the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. would be drawn into conflict. Today, this question revolves around civil wars and failed states. The goal has, however, remained the same: to maintain international stability, as this is in Canada’s interests.
Civil wars and failed states have differing objectives to those in the Cold War, and peacekeeping has proven an ineffective means to resolve such conflicts, leaving open the question of whether such policies are now in Canada’s interests. The other two pillars of Canadian foreign policy are diplomacy and development. These skill-sets have given Canada a means of leading on the world stage, both of which also arose during the Cold War and are policies that can be adapted for today’s circumstances.
Canada was once the mediator between the world’s two superpowers, and it played this role well, helping to maintain stability through its ‘good offices.’ This allowed the two sides, whether directly or indirectly, to discuss issues of contention. It is feasible that, given the strong esteem in which many countries hold our current government, Canada could revitalize this role, aiding in resolving issues of conflict around the globe.
Development assistance arose because of the fear that newly independent countries may turn to Communism, as many of these former colonies were quite poor. Global poverty is still a concern, and it still has ideological and religious undertones, which can be exploited and lead to conflict. Canada may not have the economic means to resolve such poverty, but it does have the ability to produce abundance in food, which could be given as assistance, as hunger is one of the causes of global instability. Canada has a strong connection to the World Food Program, as its founding state, and we should strengthen our interest in this organization.
As our leaders like to dance upon the world stage, performing pirouettes in the limelight, maybe we can refocus our attentions to help rebuild a role for Canada. We will never be a military might, but we do have a softer approach that affords us much influence, and we can use this positively to promote our own goals of peace and stability, as envisioned by Lester Pearson, as a means of making Canada great.
John Kennair is an international consultant and doctor of laws who lives in St. Albert.
