Ottawa, August 20, 2025 - Alex Paterson, Senior Director of Strategy and Parliamentary Affairs with Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME), today issued the following statement:
“Yesterday CBC learned that Ottawa-based Calian had been sending GPS antennas to Elbit Systems’ electronic warfare division in Israel. This revelation comes on the heels of Canadians learning over the last month that the Federal government has been allowing companies based in Canada to sell training weapons and bullets, as well as parts for the Iron Dome, to Israel. These shipments continue to be uncovered at the same time as the world recoils in horror from the shocking reality of Israel’s genocidal starvation and slaughter of Palestinians in Gaza. We’ve all had to learn the hard truth that Canada’s arms industry seems quite happy to profit off the ethnic cleansing of Palestine as long as no one is watching, which is possible given the shoddy state of Canada’s regulatory regime overseeing our arms trade.
“Our arms control rules have so many holes they are like swiss cheese. Canada says it is okay to send so-called ‘training weapons’ to a country carrying out a genocide. Canada says it is okay to send ‘defensive’ components to that same country, sustaining its military capabilities and shielding it from any retaliation. Canada says it is okay to send GPS equipment to the country committing genocide to help them target Palestinians more effectively. Canada rubber stamps the F35 parts being sent to Israel directly and through the US. What is the point in having an arms control regime if it has so many loopholes and so many exceptions?
“These revelations leave us with three possibilities to consider, either 1) the Minister and her staff are incompetent, 2) the Minister and her staff are spinning the truth, or 3) the Minister and her staff have failed, or are unable, to crack down on corporate violations of our weapons export laws. Every single one of these possible scenarios is a scandal that should shock Canadians to their core and make them question the credibility of our civil and political institutions.
“Canadians want an end to the transfer of weapons to Israel, without exception. Canadians have made this clear through public opinion polling, and through their representatives in the last Parliament which voted to stop weapons transfers. The laws we have in place under the Export and Import Permit Act are clearly not working, and Global Affairs Canada seems unwilling to fix it. Prime Minister Carney must step in and immediately order Minister Anand and Global Affairs Canada to issue a full arms embargo under the Special Economic Measures Act. While it is a blunt instrument, it's the only way at this point to regain the public trust that the government is enacting the will of the Canadian people.”