NR 11.057 - June 9, 2011
OTTAWA – The Honourable Peter MacKay, Minister of National Defence, participated in a meeting of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Defence Ministers on June 8 and 9, in Brussels, Belgium. While the meeting covered a range of issues, the discussion’s main focus was NATO’s mission in support of the international community’s objectives in Libya.
“Since the beginning of our mandate in Libya, Canada has been actively involved in protecting the civilian population in Libya,” said Minister MacKay. “Canada is proud of its commitment to freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law and I'm proud of the work of our men and women in uniform in defending these ideals.”
NATO allies and partners have agreed that the mission in Libya will continue for another 115 days.
Minister MacKay announced the Parliament of Canada will debate an extension of the Canadian Forces mission to protect Libyan civilians from the Gadhafi regime on June 14th. The Parliamentary motion will seek to extend the current military mission in Libya for another three and a half months, up to the end of September 2011. The debate will be followed by a vote on June 15th.
Minister MacKay also announced that the incremental costs associated with Operation MOBILE up to June 2nd, were $26 million. According to the Department of National Defence, an extension of the mission until the end of September 2011 will increase the cost of mission to approximately $60 million.
Other topics covered at the meeting included the transition of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan and the reform of NATO’s command structure and its various agencies.
Minister MacKay also took the opportunity to meet separately with a number of his NATO and international counterparts, including U.S. Secretary of Defense Dr. Robert M. Gates, British Secretary of State for Defence, Dr. Liam Fox, French Minister of Defense, Mr. Gérard Longuet, and Australian Minister for Defence, Mr. Stephen Smith.
The next meeting of NATO Defence Ministers will take place in Brussels in October 2011.
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