On December 5, the Honourable Harjit S. Sajjan, Minister of National Defence, participated virtually in the Manama Dialogue, hosted by the International Institute for Strategic Studies in the Kingdom of Bahrain.
Minister Sajjan underscored Canada's commitment to advance peace and security in the Middle East and emphasised the importance of multilateralism and global cooperation to tackle current and future challenges facing the international community. The Minister spoke with colleagues about Operation IMPACT, where Canada has been an active member of the Global Coalition against Daesh and a leader of and contributor to NATO Mission Iraq. The Minister also underlined the Canadian Armed Forces' contributions to other regional operations including Operations ARTEMIS, CALUMET, PROTEUS and JADE.
The Manama Dialogue is an annual security summit that brings together government ministers, as well as members of the expert, opinion-forming and business communities to engage in lively debate about the Middle East's most pressing security challenges. Discussions at this year's Dialogue focused on COVID-19, global governance, conflict resolution, nuclear proliferation, defence diplomacy, and new security partnerships in the Middle East.
Quotes
"The world is in a period of massive change and there are no easy solutions to the problems that impact all of us. We've seen many examples, including in the Middle East, of what our combined efforts can achieve. We will always work with our trusted allies and like-minded partners in the Middle East and around the world to uphold the rules-based international order."
The Honourable Harjit S. Sajjan, Minister of National Defence
Quick facts
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Operation IMPACT is Canada's military contribution to a whole of government strategy in the Middle East to help regional security partner forces plan and execute military operations aimed at improving stability in the region. Op IMPACT synchronizes Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) military training with the Global Coalition against Daesh.
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Operation IMPACT provides advice and mentorship with our NATO allies under NATO Mission Iraq (NMI), and with regional partners such as Jordan and Lebanon. Canada commanded NMI for the first two years of the mission (2018-2020), handing over command to Denmark on November 24, 2020.
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Operation ARTEMIS is the CAF mission to contribute maritime capabilities and military personnel to Combined Task Force 150 to help stop terrorism and make Middle Eastern waters more secure.
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Operation CALUMET is Canada's support to the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) in Egypt. The MFO is an independent peacekeeping mission in the Sinai Peninsula. Canada has been part of the MFO since September 1, 1985.
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Operation PROTEUS is Canada's contribution to the Office of the United States Security Coordinator (USSC). CAF members serve with the USSC team as part of Canada's military task force in Jerusalem, and work closely with other Canadian government civilian staff in the region. The aim is to develop the Palestinian Authority's ability to keep its citizens safe and secure and to promote peace in the region.
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Operation JADE is a CAF mission in the Middle East. It is Canada's contribution to the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO). Operation JADE is Canada's longest-running overseas commitment. The first CAF members to serve with UNTSO were sent in 1954.
