breaking news...Canada Says No to Missile Defence

At first this semed like a big surprise to me. On second thought, we know that the Prime Minister has some strong opposition from his own cabinet, as well as from members of the Opposition. Frankly, I don't think most Canadians know enough about it to have a opinion one way or another. It's going to be very interesting to see how President Bush reacts to the news...privately.




Prime Minister Paul Martin will say "no" to missile defence.

Martin will announce on Thursday that Canada will not participate in the U-S missile-defence program.

An official in the Prime Minister's Office says Canada has delivered a firm "no" to U-S officials, but he's not sure it was an indefinite "no."

The decision comes the same day comments over missile defence by Frank McKenna sparked outrage in the House of Commons.

Canada’s next Ambassador to the U-S said Canada is already taking part in the U-S missile defence plan. McKenna told reporters that Canada is “part of it now.”

McKenna pointed out that Canada agreed last summer to allow Norad to monitor for incoming missiles -- a key element of the program.

The U.S. was informed of Canada's plans to reject participation in missile defence at a NATO summit in Brussels on Tuesday, where Martin and U-S President George W. Bush met with 24 other members.