National Defense Minister David McGuinty stands at attention during an advanced honor cordon at the Pentagon on September 22, 2025 in Arlington, Virginia. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Defence Minister David McGuinty said the recently slain Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had spread his “evil” influence in Iran and elsewhere, but Ottawa is now calling for a diplomatic resolution to hostilities.
McGuinty made the comments to reporters while on a visit to Australia on March 3, after being asked whether Canada believes the death of Khamenei is a positive development. Prime Minister Mark Carney initially backed the U.S. attack on Iran on Feb. 28.
Khamenei and many other Iranian leaders were killed over the weekend, soon after the United States and Israel launched a bombing campaign in Iran.
“The Ayatollah Khamenei has been for many, many decades a very, very powerful force for evil in Iran and in the region,” McGuinty said.
The defence minister noted the Iranian regime’s use of proxy groups in the region and its involvement in “organized criminal syndicates.” Iran has been the key benefactor to groups like Lebanese Hezbollah, Palestinian Hamas, the Yemeni Houthis, and various Shia factions in Iraq.
McGuinty said his government had decided from the outset to support the military actions against the Iranian regime while also calling for a diplomatic solution.
The initial statement on the events from Carney and Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand, issued on Feb. 28, had not called for a diplomatic solution. It had instead noted how diplomatic efforts had failed to dismantle Iran’s nuclear program or stop its support of regional terrorist proxy groups.
“Canada supports the United States acting to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and to prevent its regime from further threatening international peace and security,” the statement reads.
Ottawa called Iran the “principal source of instability and terror” in the Middle East and one of the worst human rights offenders. The Iranian regime earlier this year killed thousands of its citizens who protested against the regime.
Anand issued a subsequent statement on March 2 that calls on all parties to resume talks and seek a diplomatic resolution.
Anand also criticized Iranian retaliatory actions, which have affected civilian infrastructure across the region. Iranian forces have used drones and missiles to target Israel as well as neighbouring Gulf countries hosting American military bases. The minister said these attacks represent an “unacceptable escalation” which threatens to further destabilize the region.
On March 2, Anand told reporters in India that Canada was not notified before the United States and Israel launched their attack.
Anand said Ottawa prefers a diplomatic solution to the crisis and said she has been speaking with her counterparts in the Middle East and in the G7 to advance this goal. The minister said the responses she received have differed.
“Some countries believe that a diplomatic solution is not possible at this time. Others want to work as quickly as possible to ensure diplomacy becomes the next phase of this horrific situation,” she said.
Carney has not recently commented on the situation, having cancelled the media availability scheduled during his trip in India over the weekend.
Dissension
There has been some open dissension within the Liberal caucus regarding Canada’s initial stance on the strikes against Iran.
Liberal MP Will Greaves, first elected in 2025 in British Columbia, posted a video on Instagram over the weekend criticizing Carney’s support for the strikes on Iran. Greaves said Canada can be “clear-eyed” about the Iranian regime’s human rights abuses and its “destructive role” in the region while advocating for restraint and protection of civilians.
“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, who is a former associate professor of international relations at the University of Victoria.
Former Liberal cabinet minister Lloyd Axworthy also called the U.S. policy “unlawful” and criticized Carney for supporting it.
Asked by reporters to comment on the criticism, McGuinty said the Liberal Party is a “big tent” where there’s room for “all kinds of competing views.”
Opposition parties have also criticized different aspects of the Liberal government’s response.
Some Conservative MPs highlighted the contradictions in Ottawa’s messaging on the Iran issue.
Tory Deputy Leader Melissa Lantsman said Anand has had “no consistency” in messaging around the conflict.
“It’s a different message at different times to different audiences,” she said March 2 on X.
Tory MP Roman Baber also said Carney and his ministers have had confusing and, at times, contradicting messages on the issue.
“Carney is in favour of Epic Fury – so much for his New World Order! Anand says Canada has nothing and will have nothing to do with it, then deletes the tweet,” Baber said March 3 on X. “McGuinty says Khamenei is evil but wants a ceasefire? Where is the Liberal Government and where is [Canada] on this war?”
Baber’s reference to “Epic Fury” is the name of the U.S. operation against Iran, meanwhile the reference to the “new world order” alludes to Carney’s trip to China in January, where he signed a series of agreements with Beijing. Carney had told Chinese Premier Li Qiang at the time that “the progress that we have made in the partnership sets us up well for the new world order.”
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet said in a March 1 X post that Carney has backed the U.S. strikes without any “nuances,” and without consulting with the United Nations and allies.
NDP Interim Leader Don Davies has criticized the U.S.-Israeli strike, and said in an X post on Feb. 28 that Carney’s stance contradicts the values he promoted during his January speech in Davos, Switzerland. The speech contained thinly veiled criticism of the Trump administration and talked of “coercion” employed by unspecified “great powers.”
‘Not Involved’
Along with calling for a diplomatic solution, McGuinty noted that Canada is not involved in the war.
“The prime minister was very clear in his statement that he supported the incursion led by the United States and Israel,” he said. “But I want to make it very clear that Canada, and Canada’s armed forces, were not involved in the preparation nor the execution of that particular decision by the Israelis and the Americans to attack Iran.”
McGuinty said there are currently some Canadian military personnel in the Middle East, but they are safe.
“They are all fine, out of harm’s way, and it’s something that we’re watching very carefully,” he said.
The Canadian Armed Forces have a number of military operations in the Middle East, including Op Artemis, Op Foundation, and Op Impact, all of which pertain to counterterrorism efforts. Canada also contributes to the NATO mission in Iraq to bolster local security forces.
Countries where Canadian personnel may be located, such as Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar, have all faced Iranian attacks since the conflict has erupted.
Six U.S. service members were killed in Kuwait on March 1 when the tactical operations centre they were working from was struck. Kuwait’s Ministry of Defense said on March 2 it had detected and intercepted 178 ballistic missiles and 384 drones from Iran.
Kuwait also mistakenly shot down three U.S. fighter jets in a friendly fire incident on March 1. The U.S. military said all six crew members ejected, were recovered, and are in stable condition.
Other Gulf countries have also been hit as Iran’s retaliation campaign has expanded. Several Gulf states—including the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain—have reported missile or drone strikes on infrastructure and energy facilities. On March 3, drones struck fuel tanks at the Port of Duqm in Oman, despite the country’s previous role as a mediator between the United States and Iran.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have announced that the Strait of Hormuz is closed to shipping and threatened to fire on any vessel attempting to pass, a development that could imperil roughly 20 percent of global oil exports. The UK Royal Navy has reported several incidents around the area in recent days, including vessels being struck by unknown projectiles and catching fire.
In other developments, U.S. President Donald Trump said on March 3 he would cancel trade with Spain over the country’s refusal to let the U.S. military use its bases for Iran operations.
Trump said his country and Israel had initially projected the attack would last four to five weeks. The president also said Iran’s new leadership wants to talk, but that it’s now “too late.”
No Canadian Casualties
Amid the ongoing turmoil, Global Affairs Canada reported on March 3 that it is not aware of any Canadians being injured or killed in the hostilities. Global Affairs also noted a significant rise in the number of Canadians in the region who have registered with the department, now totalling 97,000.
Anand’s department has also updated its travel advice, warning Canadians to avoid all travel to Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Israel and Palestine, Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar, Syria, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.
Meanwhile, Global Affairs has also expanded consular capacity in countries neighbouring Iran to provide assistance, including Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, and Turkey.