The Canadian Muslim Public Affairs Council (CMPAC) is deeply concerned about Prime Minister Carney’s ‘Zionist Palestine’ controversial suggestion and his biased remarks on Iran, in a recent interview. These suggestions and remarks demonstrate a continuation of Canadian foreign policy that falls short of the government’s stated commitment to a principled, rights-based approach grounded in international law. While Prime Minister Carney projected an image of diplomatic engagement and multilateral leadership, the substance of his remarks reveals troubling positions on several critical issues in the Middle East. CMPAC offers the following analysis:
- Lack of a principled foreign policy grounded in international law
In his interview with Christiane Amanpour, Prime Minister Carney failed to articulate Canada’s obligations under international law. Instead of demanding accountability for grave violations, he focused on managing alliances and geopolitical interests at the expense of legal and moral clarity.
When asked directly about Israel’s siege of Gaza, which has killed thousands of civilians, destroyed critical infrastructure, and deliberately blocked food, water, and medical supplies, Carney refused to acknowledge it as a genocide or a war crime. He stated that Canada was “using this opportunity, if I can term it that way, to establish, reestablish the ceasefire in Gaza, reestablish the full resumption of humanitarian aid.” Framing the crisis in purely humanitarian terms without addressing accountability or legality, effectively shields Israel from scrutiny. It minimizes Canada’s obligations under the Geneva Conventions, which require not only providing aid but also condemning and working to prevent grave breaches such as collective punishment and indiscriminate attacks on civilians.
Such an approach fails to uphold the very principles of international law that Canada claims to champion. Canada cannot claim to be a credible advocate for a rules-based international order if it refuses to apply those rules consistently, including to its allies.
- Failure to recognize Palestinian self-determination
One of the most troubling moments in the interview was Prime Minister Carney’s description of what a future Palestinian state should look like. He spoke of “effectively working on a path to a Palestinian state… living side by side in security with, with Israel, you know, a Zionist, if you will, Palestinian state that recognizes the right of Israel to exist not just to exist, but to prosper and not live in fear.”
This framing is not only dismissive but profoundly problematic. By suggesting that Palestinians must be a “Zionist” state as the condition for their own statehood, Carney denies them the basic right to define their own national character and political future. Self-determination is a core principle of international law, affirmed in the UN Charter and multiple human rights treaties, and it cannot be made contingent on adopting the ideological identity of their occupier.
Such language reflects a concerning disregard for the reality of military occupation and ongoing settlement expansion in Palestinian territory. It shifts responsibility away from the occupying power and places unfair demands on the occupied. Canada cannot credibly claim to support a two-state solution while showing commitment to one side and putting political conditionality on the other.
- Refusal to acknowledge genocide
Carney repeatedly avoided acknowledging that Israel’s actions in Gaza constitute a genocide, despite growing international concern over credible allegations of genocidal acts and intent. When asked about the catastrophic situation, he offered only a narrow humanitarian framing, saying Canada was focused on “the siege, the need for a ceasefire now, a full resumption… of humanitarian aid.”
This response is profoundly inadequate given Canada’s obligations under the Genocide Convention, which requires states not only to punish but to prevent genocide. Framing the crisis as an “opportunity” to negotiate a ceasefire ignores the scale of destruction, the mass killing of civilians, forced displacement, and deliberate deprivation of food, water, and medicine that have drawn accusations of genocidal conduct from legal experts and international organizations.
By refusing even to acknowledge these allegations, Canada abdicates its responsibility to investigate, speak out against, and act to prevent and punish a genocide. A foreign policy that reduces such grave crimes to a humanitarian logistics issue cannot fulfil the most basic standards of international law and moral leadership.
- Double Standards on Nuclear Disarmament
Carney’s remarks on Iran reveal a troubling double standard and a dismissal of core principles of international law and diplomacy. He repeatedly defends the U.S. and Israel’s recent military strikes on Iran primarily targeting it’s nuclear and military facilities, ignoring the United Nations Charter’s clear prohibition on the use of force and the principle of non-aggression. Carney claimed that “the position of Iran has been substantially degraded, both with respect to airspace, potentially, significantly, with respect to, their nuclear capabilities.”
He also justified Iran’s limited retaliatory strikes by saying, “I would lean towards President Trump’s interpretation… The military action was also a diplomatic move by Iran.” This framing normalizes the use of military force while overlooking the legal requirement of peaceful dispute resolution.
Furthermore, Carney insists that Iran’s nuclear program has “nefarious” intentions despite the absence of credible evidence of an active weapons program. This ignores that Iran is a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and has been subject to extensive inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Iran has also repeatedly expressed willingness to engage in negotiations, underscoring its commitment to diplomatic solutions. Canada’s selective condemnation undermines the integrity of international law and risks escalating regional tensions rather than fostering a peaceful resolution.
On the contrary, Prime Minister Carney’s interview refused to address Israel’s well-known but undeclared nuclear weapons program. While he emphatically stated, “Iran cannot be allowed to have nuclear weapons,” he remained completely silent on Israel’s existing nuclear arsenal, which operates outside the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) framework without transparency or international inspection.
This selective condemnation exposes a clear double standard that undermines Canada’s credibility on nuclear non-proliferation. By ignoring Israel’s unaccountable nuclear capabilities while criticizing Iran’s legally regulated program, Canada’s position appears politically motivated rather than grounded in consistent, principled adherence to international law. This inconsistency weakens efforts toward genuine global disarmament and peaceful security and risks perpetuating regional instability by allowing one state to operate above the rules it demands others follow.
Concluding Remarks
After careful examination of Prime Minister Carney’s remarks and positions, CMPAC calls on the Government of Canada to realign its foreign policy with clear principles grounded in international law, human rights, and impartial application of global norms. This requires an unwavering commitment to:
- Recognize the Palestinian people’s inherent right to self-determination free from the conditions imposed by military occupation or ideological constraints, and independently recognizing a Palestinian State.
- Explicitly name and condemn the genocidal violence currently devastating Gaza;
- Reject the IHRA definition of antisemitism, which conflates legitimate criticism of Israeli state policies with hate speech and silences vital advocacy;
- Fulfill Canada’s legal obligations under the Genocide Convention to actively prevent and punish acts of genocide;
- Apply nuclear non-proliferation standards fairly and without exception, including transparency and accountability for Israel’s undeclared arsenal;
Canada’s current approach falls short of these fundamental principles. As a country that claims to uphold universal justice, Canada must reject geopolitical double standards and choose instead to stand unequivocally on the side of international law, human rights, and justice. The world is watching and the Palestinian people deserve no less.
