OTTAWA — Media reports say Canada has not been invited to a meeting of defence ministers in Paris this week to discuss the fight against Islamic State militants.
Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan’s office has confirmed to CBC News and the Globe and Mail that he won't attend Wednesday's meeting.
The reports say defence ministers from the United States, Britain, Germany, France, Italy, Australia and the Netherlands will take part in the talks.
Sajjan spokesman Renee Filiatrault told the Globe that Canada's plan to pull its CF-18s from the fight against ISIL had nothing to do with Canada's exclusion from the meeting.
Omar Alghabra, the parliamentary secretary to Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Dion, told the CBC it wasn't a surprise as those seven countries meet regularly without Canada and the only thing different this time it that defence ministers will be there.
But Conservative defence critic James Bezan said the apparent snub shows Canada is no longer seen as a valuable ally.
DEFENCE MINISTER HARJIT SAJJAN SAYS ANTI-ISIL COALITION MEETING IN PARIS IS ONE OF MANY
SAINT ANDREWS, N.B. — Canada's defence minister says there are meetings all the time to discuss threats around the world, but isn't saying why Canada was not invited to an anti-ISIL coalition meeting this week in Paris.
Counterparts from France, the U.K., Germany, Italy, Australia and the Netherlands will meet Wednesday with U.S. Secretary of Defence Ashton Carter to discuss the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
Asked why Canada was not invited, Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan says there are meetings on the subject all the time and said not being part of the Paris meeting doesn't put Canada on the outside.
"These meetings are about getting updated on what's happening on the ground, and I've been very fortunate on very recently being back in the region to get a first-hand look at what's going on, and talk to the actual commanders on the ground," Sajjan said at a cabinet retreat in Saint Andrews, N.B.
Sajjan said the Paris meeting is just one of many and he is already scheduled to gather with his counterparts for meetings in Brussels in two weeks.
"I look forward to talking to all my coalition partners probably for the third or fourth time in some cases," he said.
He says the coalition is not just looking at the current situation in Syria and Iraq, but is also looking at the overall threats around the world.
"The planning has been going on for some time now, so this is not just one meeting for the planning of the steps. It's an ongoing situation," he said.
