UNITED NATIONS, Jan 8, 2001 (LSN.ca) – On Friday, Canada signed an agreement with the United Nations to put Canadian troops and equipment on standby for UN interventions. The move is controversial since conservative critics suggest that it is the first step in the creation of a UN army. Notably, the United States has not agreed to participate in the venture which was commenced by the UN in 1994. Canada is the 34th country to sign a memorandum of understanding under the UN Standby Arrangements System agreeing to place ships, equipped military personnel and aircraft on standby for use by the UN within 30 days.
There was no public debate on the issue in Canada prior to the agreement.
The other countries that have signed the memorandum are: Argentina, Austria, Bangladesh, Benin, Bolivia, Chad, Chile, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ghana, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Kyrgyz Republic, Lithuania, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Paraguay, Romania, Singapore, Spain, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Uruguay, Zimbabwe.