London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 23, 2025

Canada must stop arming Saudi Arabia, four former MPs say 

Canada must stop arming Saudi Arabia, four former MPs say 

'So long as the arms continue to flow, this war is just going to get worse,' says one expert.
Foreign policy is not typically a ballot box issue in Canada, and this election is no exception: Canada’s role in the world has thus far received little attention on the hustings. However, as former members of Parliament from four of Canada’s five major political parties, we find ourselves in agreement on a pressing foreign policy issue that must transcend party lines: Ending Canada’s arms exports to Saudi Arabia must be a priority of the next government, regardless of its political stripe.

We add our voices to a chorus of civil society organizations who have repeatedly raised legitimate concerns about the serious ethical, legal, human rights and humanitarian implications of these exports.

The bulk of Canadian arms exports to Saudi Arabia are light armoured vehicles, or LAVs, manufactured by General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada in London, Ont. In 2014, the Canadian government brokered the sale of hundreds of LAVs to the Saudi armed forces. Worth an estimated $14 billion, this arms contract is the largest in Canadian history. Arms transfers to Saudi Arabia now account for an overwhelming majority of Canada’s total non-U.S. military exports.

Saudi Arabia has a dismal human rights record, both at home and abroad. Domestically, Saudi authorities repress dissidents, women’s rights activists, and independent clerics. Internationally, Saudi Arabia has, since 2015, led a coalition in a military intervention in Yemen, where it seeks to prop up the government of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, engaged in armed conflict with Houthi rebel forces reportedly linked to Iran.

Since the Saudi-led coalition began its intervention, it has been widely condemned for serious and repeated violations of international humanitarian law, including the deliberate targeting of civilians using weapons supplied by many of the world’s major arms exporters. The Houthi record is no better and certainly merits condemnation. But it is Saudi Arabia that Canada is arming.

Saudi-led coalition airstrikes have been indiscriminate and disproportionate, killing thousands of civilians while destroying critical infrastructure, including water facilities, farms, hospitals, factories and markets. In 2017, a coalition airstrike on a school bus killed 40 Yemeni children, injuring dozens more.

Last Wednesday, a report by the UN Group of Eminent Experts on Yemen named Canada, for the second year in a row, as one of several world powers helping to perpetuate the Yemeni conflict by continuing to supply weapons to the Saudi-led coalition. Ardi Imseis, a professor of law at Queen’s University and member of the expert group, has said, “So long as the arms continue to flow, this war is just going to get worse.”

Sept. 17 marks the second anniversary of Canada’s accession to the Arms Trade Treaty, a landmark multilateral agreement that aims to regulate the international transfer of weapons to reduce civilian harm during conflict. As a State Party, Canada must ensure that Canadian weapons are not used to target civilians. And yet Canada continues to export armoured vehicles to Saudi Arabia despite extensively documented domestic human rights violations and Saudi involvement in the conflict in Yemen — in contravention to its legal obligations.

After six years of war, Yemen is one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. An estimated 20.1 million Yemenis are in need of humanitarian assistance, 16.2 million face acute food insecurity, and more than five million are on the brink of famine. All actors in the Yemen conflict have played a role in creating the current situation, including foreign governments that have sustained the violence by supplying arms.

Canada has a role to play in bringing peace to Yemen as well as a legal obligation to comply with domestic and international export controls. The next government of Canada should follow in the footsteps of several European countries and immediately suspend arms exports to Saudi, expand humanitarian assistance to Yemen, and play a diplomatic role in bringing an end to this brutal conflict.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
×