Art Eggleton

[Kosovo, April 27th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, as the Prime Minister said today, these 800 troops are being sent over in connection with peacekeeping functions. They will be located in Macedonia. They will be working with a British brigade. That is why they are going to that specific location.

There are already some 12,000 troops in Macedonia who are there for purposes of moving into Kosovo when a peace agreement is reached. Then we will go in there to help bring about peace and security for the people of Kosovo.

There is no other reason for them to be there. As the Prime Minister has said, if there is any change in those terms or conditions there would be further debate in the House.

[Supply, April 27th, 1999]

Madam Speaker, with respect to the question of whether or not this is called a war, I think most people call it that. However there are also legal implications of using that term. That term has not been used in the case of this conflict by either side. In fact it was not officially used in Korea. Korea was called a war by everybody but that was not part of the official terminology. Neither was it in the gulf. People will call things as they see them, but there is no change in the status as a result of what has been announced today.

I would beg to differ that the actions we have taken today are accelerating the conflict. We are sending troops over to be part of a peacekeeping mission. That has been made quite clear. It has also been made clear that if they change to doing anything else, anything that involves a heavier kind of conflict or less permissive kind of atmosphere going in on the ground into Kosovo, that matter would come back for debate in parliament and would require a decision of the government as well. That commitment sticks. These people are only going over there for that business. That hardly accelerates the conflict. They are just going over as peacekeepers.

In terms of what they are capable of doing, they are capable of being involved in a greater combat situation than we would hope peacekeeping would involve because they are trained as combat capable troops.

There can be speculation on the different kinds of readiness they would require, depending upon where we end up in terms of going into Kosovo, but our military planners are looking at a number of options. That is as far as it goes because the commitment at this point in time is to continue with and intensify the air campaign and to have the 800 troops as part of a peacekeeping force that would go into Kosovo when a ceasefire peace agreement has been reached.

[Supply, April 27th, 1999]

Madam Speaker, yes, they will be armed just as they are armed in Bosnia, as they are armed in most other theatres of peacekeeping operation. They will be armed and able to defend themselves if that becomes necessary.

They will be deployed out of Edmonton, Alberta. As I indicated earlier there will be some 280 vehicles. Those vehicles will start to move toward Montreal. They will then be put on a ship and sent to Europe and then taken from there into the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia.

[Supply, April 27th, 1999]

Madam Speaker, I appreciate the comments and the support of the hon. member for Compton—Stanstead. I am pleased to receive particularly his remark that this is the right move to make.

With respect to the training they have received, all our troops that go overseas or to any mission receive standard training of combat capability. Part of the 1994 defence white paper was to have multipurpose combat capable troops. They also receive specific training relevant to the mission and relevant to peacekeeping.

Peacekeeping nowadays, as we have seen in Bosnia and in other areas, requires our troops to be able to defend themselves because of some very difficult circumstances. The Medak pocket was a great example of that in Bosnia a number of years ago. They have to be combat capable because peacekeeping can be dangerous at times. Over 100 Canadians in the years that we have been involved in peacekeeping have lost their lives in peacekeeping missions.

They have received standard combat capable training, specific training relevant to peacekeeping and specific training relevant to this mission. They will continue to get training while they are in Macedonia with the British brigade because we want the units to work well together. Our Canadians will be self-sustaining. They will be a sustainable force but they will work with the British and will get further training.

With respect to the borders, each of those countries has responsibility for their borders. We will also be there helping out in terms of the refugee problem wherever we can be of help. We would certainly want to make sure the refugees are protected, so there may be occasions when we could be involved. We hope that will not be the case in terms of that kind of defence. The essential responsibility for the borders belongs to each of the surrounding countries.

[Supply, April 27th, 1999]

Madam Speaker, I appreciate the concern expressed by the hon. member. We have that concern as well. We are anxious that this matter be brought to an end as quickly as it possibly can, using both military and diplomatic means. We want to see a solution to this matter as quickly as possible.

The air campaign is being intensified. Additional aircraft are going into the area. The Apache helicopters will soon be deployed. As the weather gets better more sorties will be carried out.

It is not that we want to do this. We would rather have Milosevic come to the table.

We put in place last fall this air operation plan. We then spent every bit of time between then and March 24 trying to find a diplomatic resolution to the matter. Still we must seek every opportunity to find that diplomatic resolution.

However, so far Mr. Milosevic has not yielded to what the international community asks of him, to pull back his troops and to let the Kosovars return to their homes. Yes, they are going to have to rebuild their homes. A lot of them have been burned out. They are going to need help in doing that. In fact the entire region is going to need help in reconstructing itself and moving forward economically. A lot of reconstruction work will have to be done.

So far Mr. Milosevic has not yielded. He ignores the international community. He goes on with his ethnic cleansing and the butchering of the people of Kosovo. We cannot stand by idly. We have done everything we can to this point in terms of diplomacy. We will continue to do things in terms of diplomacy, but meanwhile the air campaign will intensify until the Yugoslav government comes to the table and agrees to the terms. Then we can put in place a peacekeeping force, which will include 800 Canadians, to make sure that the Kosovars can return to their homes in peace and security.

[Supply, April 27th, 1999]

Madam Speaker, I neglected to mention at the beginning of my speech that I will be splitting my time with the member for Lac-Saint-Louis.

In response to the question, we are pre-deploying our troops to FYROM, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, for eventual movement into Kosovo as part of a peacekeeping mission when a ceasefire and a peace settlement has been reached. That has always been the plan. That was what was talked about in terms of the Rambouillet agreement, that we would have an international military presence in Kosovo to ensure the peace and security of Kosovo and for the Kosovars to be able to live in peace and security.

We are taking them from Canada to the region and putting them adjacent to Kosovo, in Macedonia, so that when the time comes for a peacekeeping mission to go into Kosovo they will be there together with numerous other countries. It is not just the British, it is the French, the Italians and numerous others. There are 12,000 of them in Macedonia, but there are also a number of troops in Albania, troops that will be part of a peacekeeping force that will go in when agreement is reached.

[Supply, April 27th, 1999]

Madam Speaker, I am pleased to speak to this motion today.

Let me say clearly at the outset that we in Canada, we in the government, seek peace. As always we prefer to seek peace through peaceful means.

In its quest for peace and security, Canada has always favoured diplomacy.

Our diplomatic heritage has become a tradition that we further at all opportunities. It is something that we are justifiably proud of.

But even our elder statesman of diplomacy, the former Prime Minister Lester Pearson, the father of peacekeeping, understood that military force had a necessary role in achieving peace and security. Why? Because sometimes words and threats are not enough. Negotiations require two parties at the table together believing in what their words and promises can achieve.

We have been and are willing to sit at that table. At this point President Milosevic is not. Let me remind the House of Mr. Milosevic's appalling track record when it comes to willingness to negotiate.

In March 1998 the United Nations passed resolution 1160 calling on all parties to reach a peaceful settlement. This was followed by UN resolution 1199 in September. It demanded that both sides cease hostilities and improve the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation in the region. In October 1998, backed by the threat of NATO air power, an agreement was reached that established a ceasefire and allowed for an observer mission led by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe to verify compliance. The agreement also called for strict limits on the deployment of the Yugoslav security forces.

Regrettably, and true to form as we have seen over many years, Mr. Milosevic did not keep his word. Yugoslav forces violated the ceasefire, responded disproportionately to the actions of the Kosovo Liberation Army and carried out a campaign against civilians in clear violation of international humanitarian law.

Despite this gross misconduct, we still gave negotiations another chance. Talks quickly began in Rambouillet, France. These negotiations sought a peaceful solution by balancing the interests and the demands of the parties. The interim agreement we reached provided for a high degree of autonomy for Kosovo, but as part of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. In the end the Kosovars agreed. They exercised courage and they signed the agreement. Mr. Milosevic did not. Eleventh hour efforts by U.S. envoy Richard Holbrooke proved fruitless.

By March 24 we realized that the diplomatic track to that point in time had run its course. Our patience and our commitment to leave no diplomatic stone unturned was once again rewarded by Mr. Milosevic's unwillingness to honour the agreements that he had made or to seek a peaceful resolution.

I have just described the long history of our diplomatic efforts to stand against Milosevic's tyranny. This crisis represents a fundamental challenge to the values of democracy, human rights and the rule of law. These are values which Canadians have defended in words, but also in deeds in the first and the second world wars, in Korea and, more recently, in the gulf war. They are also values that NATO has upheld since its inception some 50 years ago.

Our military actions are justified. We have been forced to use the military tool because the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia has repeatedly violated United Nations Security Council resolutions. It has spurned attempts to forge a negotiated peace, with catastrophic results to the people of Kosovo. The unrestrained assault by the Yugoslav military police and paramilitary forces on Kosovar civilians has created a massive humanitarian catastrophe and threatens to destabilize the surrounding region. These have been extreme, calculated and criminal policies. They cannot be defended on any ground.

Let me be clear. The military action against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia supports the political aims of the international community. Our objective is to foster a return to a peaceful multi-ethnic and democratic Kosovo in which all of its people can live in security and enjoy universal human rights and freedoms on an equal basis. Canada and its allies are united in this objective.

It is an objective that is supported by the UN Secretary General and the European Union, and by Russia. Even Russian efforts to seek a negotiated settlement were met with half-hearted concessions and a flagrant disregard for the need to respect basic human rights and international law. However, the alliance shares a common interest with Russia in reaching a political solution to the crisis in Kosovo and will work constructively with Russia to this end wherever possible.

We know of the forthcoming mission of my colleague, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and we wish him well in his efforts to help bring that about.

The international community is united in its ultimate preference for a negotiated settlement in this crisis.

Before I finish I would like to provide some additional information on the latest developments. As the Prime Minister indicated just a few moments ago, Canada has now received a formal request from NATO to deploy to the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia the military contingent we had identified some months ago as our contribution to the international peace implementation process in Kosovo. We have agreed to this request.

A Canadian peacekeeping force in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia will consist of up to 800 people and will be equipped with about 280 vehicles and eight Griffon helicopters. Its main components will be a reconnaissance squadron, which will be capable of conducting surveillance and security operations in Kosovo. In fact, they will be using some of the latest equipment, such as the Coyote. The helicopter unit which I mentioned will carry out airborne surveillance, transport and medical evacuation missions. Also added to this team of about 600 people will be 200 combat engineers.

Our force will operate as part of a British armoured brigade within the NATO led allied rapid reaction core. That is why we are going to Macedonia. That is where the British brigade is located. These troops and these functions complement and supplement those which the British will be providing. We currently work with them in SFOR in Bosnia and it will be a similar kind of arrangement in Macedonia. The British already have troops in the region and they are counting on us to be there with them. The secretary of defence for the U.K. specifically said that to me in a meeting held last week.

It will take our force up to 60 days, we hope a little less, to reach the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and become operationally ready. This period is necessary to assemble the required military equipment and logistical supplies, move them by rail to Montreal and then by ship to Europe.

As the Prime Minister pointed out, our Canadian forces contingent will be part of an international peace implementation force. In other words, they will be peacekeepers. Although a peace settlement has not yet been reached, deploying our people now will serve two important purposes. First, it will allow our force to integrate fully with the British brigade and to train with them so that they can respond rapidly and effectively when a settlement is reached. Second, our troops will be able to provide immediate support to ongoing humanitarian operations in the region until and after a peace settlement is reached.

With our military campaign we are achieving what we set out to do. The cost of standing idly by is being measured in the lives of our fellow human beings. We have seen so far a callous and ominous disregard for human security. Canada always prefers a diplomatic solution. Our tradition has always been to appeal to the powers of reason and to try to achieve peace without the use of force or even the threat of it.

Although we have gained a deserved reputation as a peacekeeper, no one should ever forget that we have never and will never shy away from the stronger means if that is what is necessary to pursue peace and human rights.

[Kosovo, April 26th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, it has been said on many occasions that the Sea Kings are well maintained and continue to serve the needs of the Canadian forces. There is also a procurement strategy being finalized by the government with respect to the purchase of the replacement helicopter when the Sea King's day is done.

[Kosovo, April 26th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, we are a long way from that decision because the military planners have not reported in Brussels to the NATO council.

When NATO makes a decision of course Canada has to be part of making that decision and part of determining whether we even deploy HMCS Athabaskan . However, if we do, it will be fully equipped and ready to go and the Sea King helicopters will be performing quite well.

[Kosovo, April 26th, 1999]

Mr. Speaker, it is the hon. member who is using the word blockade. The word that was used in the case of the leaders meeting at NATO was embargo.

In fact, the embargo being placed is an embargo that is being agreed to by countries from the European Union. We hope many other countries will also agree to that. If there is a decision to deploy the naval force, for one thing, and if Canada participates in it, which is a government decision yet to be made, then that is the kind of scenario we are talking about, not one which would in fact put a blockade against Russian ships which would in fact increase the tension. We do not want to increase the tension. We want to resolve this.