Sunday March 1, 2026 | VICTORIA, BC
Political analysis by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
Breaking ranks with the Prime Minister, Liberal Victoria MP Will Greaves is expressing concern about how the United States with Israel has launched a military strike on Iran.
In a post in social media yesterday, Greaves notes how the Middle East region is now “at risk of a higher military escalation”.
“I want to put Canada’s response in context because it matters,” said Greaves.
He was referring to Prime Minister Mark Carney’s expression of appreciation that the US had taken out a brutal dictator who had acted with brutality against his own people and who country (Iran) has been behind terrorist activity for decades (including the attack on the Twin Towers in New York in 2001 and the attack in Israel in October 2023).
Carney made it clear (addressing media while on his trade mission in India yesterday) that Canada was not in any way involved in the planning or execution of the Operation Epic Fury that was launched in Iran on February 28.
Trump has created an opportunity for the people of an oppressed country to seize their own freedom, which some advocates for removing the terrorist threat posed by Iran that has gone on for decades.
Davos speech was clear-eyed:
Greaves calls Carney’s message delivered in January in Davos as “clear eyed about the world we are in now, that the old international order is not coming back and the middle powers like Canada must act together because if we’re not at the table we will be on the menu”.
The Davos speech has heralded by politicians in all parties and leaders around the world for setting a new bar of understanding about how the economy and geopolitics is changing rapidly without apparently much regard for rules and order that have been in place since after the second world war,
The first-term MP said that Carney’s position expressed in the Davos speech “implies independence, consistency, and principled pragmatism in our foreign policy even when it’s uncomfortable”.
But then Greaves shifted to say: “Today’s statement from Canada about the US and Israeli strikes in Iran feels different” and adding that many of his constituents have reached out to him as their MP.
MP’s core responsibility:
He said that his core responsibility is to reflect the views of his constituents and that he is listening and shares many of his constituents’ concerns.
Greaves says he will “continue to advocate for two things”:
- “First: a consistent Canadian standard, one that applies the laws of war and the principles of protecting civilians whether the actors are allies or advertsaries. All states have an obligation to protect civilian life and no state the right to wage aggressive war,” said Greaves.
- “Second: urgent, active de-escalation through diplomacy — Canada working with partners to prevent a wider regional war and pushing every channel available, not just statements. International organizations like the UN are deeply flawed and have the limits of their effectiveness in this time. But there are still spaces where we can apply diplomatic pressure in support of civilian protection and humanitarian belief.”
Greaves then added a third point that he called “candor with Canadians”.
“As the prime minister said at Davos the old order is gone, then Canadians deserve to know what replaces it,” said Greaves in his short video post. “What are our red lines? Which principles guide us? And in moments when the world is most dangerous, how do we avoid sliding into automatic alignment with countries that we can no longer trust and that do not have Canada’s interests in mind?”
“We can be honest about Iran’s human rights record and abuses and the destructive role it has played in the Middle East and still insist on consistency, restraint, and the protection of civilians,” said Greaves. “Because that’s what credibility looks like in a fractured world,” he added.
Aspect of self defence:
But it can be argued that disabling Iran where continued efforts toward nuclear weapons including missiles that reportedly could soon reach North America is a different thing — it includes a component of self defence for the United States and frankly also Canada.
A developing situation:
“But Canada cannot endorse the unilateral and illegal use of military force, the killing of civilians, or the kidnap and assassination of foreign heads of government while also insisting that our sovereignty, our rights and our independence must be respected,” said Greaves.
However, it’s unclear how a direct parallel can be drawn between Iran’s distinctively brutal record and Canada’s (while not perfect, does not slaughter its people in the street for protesting).
“This is still a developing situation with a high level of volatility. Canada will continue to monitor and respond to events carefully,” said Greaves in yesterday’s post. He will he will “keep listening” and that he “will keep advocating for a Canadian approach that’s principled, pragmatic and consistent, especially with the pressure on us from outside actors is highest”.
It will be interesting to see how Prime Minister Carney responds to this.
===== RELATED:
- Canada seeks more ambitious trade partnership with India (March 1, 2026)
- USA & Israel launch bombing in Iran (February 28, 2026)
- BC Premier & federal NDP leader comment on Carney’s World Economic Forum speech (January 21, 2026)
- Carney’s speech to economic elite makes global headlines (January 21, 2026)
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