Canada's Mark Carney tries to strike a balance on Iran

"We are embracing the very doctrine we used to reject."

— Lloyd Axworthy , Politician

"Canada cannot endorse the unilateral and illegal use of military force... while also insisting that our sovereignty, our rights and our independence must be protected."

— Will Greaves , Politician

"It was going to be hard, no matter what, to reconcile the two elements of his Davos speech."

— Roland Paris , Academic

"The world is at a turning point. We see the manifestations in the Middle East. We see it everywhere."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"We want to see a broader de-escalation of these hostilities with a broader group of countries than just the direct belligerents involved."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"The world wants to see a de-escalation and wants to see Iran cease to spread the destinations of its attacks."

— Anthony Albanese , Politician

"I supported the strikes on Iran with some regret as they represented an extreme example of a rupturing world order."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"We will stand by our allies."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"We support efforts to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and to prevent its regime from further threatening international peace and security."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"The world wants to see a de-escalation and wants to see Iran cease to spread the destinations of its attacks."

— Anthony Albanese , Politician

"If we didn't hit within two weeks, they would have had a nuclear weapon."

— Donald Trump , Politician

"One can never categorically rule out participation."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"Prima facie, it appears that these actions are inconsistent with international law."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"Efforts were under way to help more than 2,000 Canadians who have requested assistance from the government to leave the Middle East region."

— Anita Anand , Politician

"One can never categorically rule out participation."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"Prima facie, it appears that these actions are inconsistent with international law."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"We will stand by our allies."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"Efforts were under way to help more than 2,000 Canadians who have requested assistance from the government."

— Anita Anand , Politician

"The current conflict is another example of the failure of the international order, despite decades of UN Security Council resolutions, the work of the International Atomic Energy Agency in a succession of sanctions and diplomatic frameworks."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"One can never categorically rule out participation."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"Canada calls for a rapid de-escalation of hostilities and is prepared to assist in achieving this goal."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"It appears that these actions are inconsistent with international law."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"Military assets had been deployed to the Middle East as a contingency plan."

— Anthony Albanese , Politician

"Iran is a principal source of instability."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"One can never categorically rule out participation."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"We were not informed in advance, we were not asked to participate."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"Iran’s nuclear threat remains and now the United States and Israel have acted without engaging the UN or consulting with allies including Canada."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"We are actively taking on the world as it is, not passively waiting for a world we wish to be."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"I warned my Iranian counterpart against launching missile or drone attacks on Saudi Arabia."

— Ishaq Dar , Politician

"Canada’s position remains clear: The Islamic Republic of Iran is the principal source of instability and terror throughout the Middle East, has one of the world’s worst human rights records, and must never be allowed to obtain or develop nuclear weapons."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"My conclusion, unfortunately, is that not much has been done."

— Mojdeh Shahriari , Activist

"One can never categorically rule out participation."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"We will stand by our allies."

— Mark Carney , Politician

"We must work together."

— Mark Carney , Politician