Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly told reporters at the Liberal caucus retreat that government 'will not have any forms of arms' made in Canada used in the Gaza Strip. Joly speaks to reporters at the Liberal caucus retreat in Nanaimo, B.C., on Sept. 10.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press
The federal government has formally laid down a roadblock in front of a deal to ship Quebec-produced ammunition to the United States for onward export to Israel.
The export-control measure was applied the day after Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly announced she would take the rare step of blocking this contract that is ultimately aimed at supplying Israel Defence Forces in their war against Hamas.
The Department of Global Affairs in a Sept. 11 letter informed General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems in Repentigny, Que., that it will be required to apply for an export permit for this pending sale, first announced by U.S. defence officials in August.
This is significant because most arms exports to the United States do not require a permit under a long-standing agreement between Ottawa and Washington and because the federal government announced in January it was no longer approving applications for export permits to send military goods to Israel.
In the letter, obtained by The Globe and Mail, Global Affairs tells General Dynamics that the ammunition deal “for onward re-export to Israel has raised concerns regarding their potential use” and notes Canada’s embargo on permits for military goods destined for Israel.
The department’s division on export controls operations noted that normally General Dynamics might be able to send the mortar cartridges without seeking a permit or any approvals under General Export Permit 47 (GEP 47), a provision that allows the unimpeded shipment of military goods to the United States as Canada’s key ally.
But, it warned, this option is off limits for the ammunition supply deal.
“In light of the information about the U.S. foreign military sale to Israel, and given the department’s ongoing assessment, we request that you temporarily refrain from using GEP 47 for the export of applicable military goods going to the United States that may subsequently be re-exported to Israel,” the letter said.
“In the interim period, we further request that you apply for individual export permits.”
The Liberal government, in response to criticism of Israel’s conduct in the war on Hamas, in January stopped approving new permits for the export of military goods to Israel.
Israel was attacked by Hamas militants on Oct. 7 in an assault that left around 1,200 people dead and about 250 taken hostage. It responded with a bombing campaign and siege in Gaza that has so far killed 41,000 Palestinians, many of them women and children, according to the Palestinian Health Authority in the territory. The federal government considers Hamas a terrorist group.
In August, the U.S. Defence Security Co-operation Agency (DSCA) announced that Secretary of State Antony Blinken had approved a US$61.1-million deal to supply Israel with 120-millimetre high-explosive mortar cartridges and that the principal contractor would be General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems Inc. in Quebec.
The decision by Ottawa to block a military sale to its key ally is unusual but both General Dynamics and the U.S. military have so far stayed mum.
General Dynamics earlier this week referred queries to the U.S. government and the DSCA. The agency referred queries to the State Department.
A spokesperson for the U.S. embassy in Canada however played down the matter, saying there is no contract currently under way and that the ammunition sale is still in development. Ariel Pollock also said it’s up to General Dynamics to decide where its products are sourced.
General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems has more than 20 facilities in the United States alone, according to the company’s website.
“The Defence Security Co-operation Agency does not stipulate where a company makes its products. The company determines how and where any contracted items are produced,” Ms. Pollock said in a statement. “The 120 mm high-explosive mortar rounds that were congressionally notified on Aug. 13, 2024 will be new production and delivery is not anticipated until calendar year 2026.”
An arms-control expert applauded the government’s decision on Israel but said Canada should rewrite its export controls so that all defence shipments to the United States undergo scrutiny.
“This is a positive development. Canadian industry is in no position to provide weapon systems to the Israeli military given the extreme risk they could be used in violations of international humanitarian law,” said Kelsey Gallagher, senior researcher with Project Ploughshares.
Global Affairs does not publish the full value of annual military exports to the United States but Project Ploughshares, based in Waterloo, Ont., estimates that it significantly exceeds $1-billion.
The Israel ammunition case “only exemplifies the dangers associated with Canada’s lack of controls on arms exports to, and ultimately through, the United States,” Mr. Gallagher said.
The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs in Canada accused Ms. Joly of damaging this country’s relationship with Israel.
“Minister Joly is doubling down on a misguided and reckless policy that likely has legal and trade implications,” Shimon Koffler Fogel, CIJA president, said in a statement. “The damage she is causing to the bilateral relationship with the only democracy in the Middle East and a country that Canada used to call an ally will not go without consequences.”