Canada finally refused to participate in the creation of an American

Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin laid an end to the omissions and speculations around the participation of his country in the US missile defense system created by the United States. Today, the head of government officially and unequivocally announced that Canada refuses to participate in the pro. Martin said that this decision was made after consultations with the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and National Defense, ITAR-TASS reports.

"We respect the US right to self -defense and protection of the American people, and Canada will, together with the United States, solve the problems of defense of North America, but Canadian efforts in this direction will not be associated with the pro," he said. The Prime Minister noted that Canada will remain as part of the joint command of the Aerospace Defense of North America (Norad). This structure was created in 1958 and is in the joint jurisdiction of the United States and Canada.

"13 billion dollars allocated for defense in the state budget adopted on Wednesday prove that Canada is all responsible for national and international security," Martin said.

In anticipation of the parliamentary elections held in June last year, he stated that, in his opinion, Canada should become part of the system intended to protect North America. However, after the liberal party headed by him lost the parliamentary majority as a result of the election, Martin adjusted his position.

The meaning of his latest statements about this was that, in order to resolve the issue of the participation of Canada in the pro, she wants to get a guarantee of non -cosmos non -exposure from the United States.

The question of the accession of Canada to the program about caused serious contradictions in parliament, inside the liberal party and in Canadian society. The refusal of Ottawa from participating in the pro became the second major disagreement with the United States over the past two years after Canada’s refusal to take part in the war in Iraq.