Canada Torn between Complying with ITAR and Possible Lawsuits from Citizens With Dual Nationality
November 2006
According to the Ottawa Citizen, a pending purchase of U.S. helicopters and airplanes by the Canadian military is raising all kinds of concerns from the Canadian Defence Department. The essence of the concern is whether complying with the U.S. restrictions under ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations) will cause Canadian Defense Companies, or their government, to act contrary to laws specified in Canada ’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms
The restrictions in question deal with who in Canada can see classified U. S. data such as repair manuals and specifications on equipment from the U. S. According to ITAR, Canadians with dual citizenship in an embargoed country, such as Cuba, Iran or China, can not access restricted data. This presents a problem in that the Canadian government cannot legally discriminate against these citizens with dual citizenship according to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This could open them up to legal action from employees, or potential employees, who are being denied access to information and/or jobs.
The Canadian government is proposing a security clearance process for government employees who may be affected by this. There has been no mention yet of whether the same considerations would be given to the 70,000 civilian workers in Canada’s aerospace and defense private sector. According to a leaked memo from the CDD (a copy of which was obtained by CanWest News Service), Canadian officials are very upset about the extent to which complying with these regulations will hinder their operations. They have even suggested that they will purchase their equipment from a source other than the U. S.
At this point, the United States Department of Defense does not seem to be willing to make concessions on its ITAR policies. Greg Suchan, Deputy Assistant Secretary and Acting Assistant Secretary of the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs at State, has stated that he hopes a solution can be found, but that “we have a feeling in our gut” about the connection between a person’s nationality and his or her loyalties.
The planned purchase of equipment from the United States by the Canadian military totals $17 billion. Negotiations are underway to find a solution that will work for both Canada and the United States.
