Canada could be sending military resources to Iran and Syria if there is Western intervention in those countries, Defence Minister Peter MacKay told the West Block shortly before announcing that Canada will maintain a naval presence in the Mediterranean Sea until the end of next year.<\/span><\/p>\n Speaking at the Halifax International Security Forum, MacKay said he wouldn\u2019t rule out military intervention.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t think we can,\u201d he said. \u201cIt’s not the preferred option, it never is.\u201d The United Nations has estimated that more than 3,500 people have been killed in Syria since the uprising began in mid-March.<\/span><\/p>\n And the crisis continues to escalate, with the country\u2019s president, Bashar al-Assad, saying on Sunday that he will continue his bloody crackdown in spite of the Arab League\u2019s threat of sanctions.<\/span><\/p>\n Iran, meanwhile, is under increasing suspicion of developing nuclear weapons \u2013 earning criticism from the Atomic Energy Agency.<\/span><\/p>\n Canada will be expected to be a key player if Western countries intervene, said U.S. Sen. John McCain, who was also at the Security Forum.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI would expect from Canada, in both of those cases, the kind of involvement we’ve seen in Libya including a leadership role,\u201d the former Republican presidential nominee told the West Block. \u201cThey gained a lot of experience in this whole Libyan operation.\u201c<\/span><\/p>\n While MacKay said he considers Canada\u2019s Libyan mission a success, he said the situation there shouldn\u2019t be compared too closely to the current conflicts.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe have to be very careful when drawing comparisons or putting too fine a point on what happened in Libya versus what\u2019s going on currently in Syria,\u201d he said.\u201cJust as I would suggest is the case for every country that we’ve seen under the spell of the Arab spring whether it be Tunisia, whether it be Egypt, whether it be what happened in Libya.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Canada became involved in the NATO-led Libya mission in March and pulled out last month.<\/span><\/p>\n Canada committed more than 600 personnel, seven fighter jets, two patrol aircraft, two frigates and two tankers to the seven-month conflict.<\/span><\/p>\n
\nAlthough the crisis in Syria has been escalating, MacKay said sanctions and diplomatic interventions will be considered before sending military.<\/span><\/p>\n