Canadian embassy attack: Justin Trudeau's soft view on terror won't work anymore

A suicide bomber killed 14 Nepalese security guards who were on way to the Canadian Embassy in Kabul. Reports suggest that the Embassy and its Canadian staff are safe. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took to Twitter to condemn the attack.

Today's attack on security workers in Kabul is appalling & cowardly. Our thoughts are with the victims as we stand with the Afghan people.

— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) June 20, 2016

Initially claimed to be a Taliban attack, there are conflicting reports now coming in, with the Islamic State in Afghanistan too claiming responsibility for the attack.

Nevertheless, the attack targeted at Canada’s embassy may force Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to rethink his alleged soft, measured and diplomatic approach towards Islamic terror.

In a press conference in March, Trudeau said that Canada was not in war with the Islamic State. This view was out rightly rejected by his European allies, especially France which had suffered a deadly attack in Paris, The Toronto Sun reported .

In another instance of allegedly taking a soft approach towards the Islamic State, a Conservative motion to declare the terror group’s actions as “genocide” was voted down by the Liberals led by the prime minister.

The prime minister claimed that while Canada stands with the world in its fight against the Islamic State, the decision on what constitutes a genocide must be an objective one. In response, the Conservative leader Rona Ambrose was quoted by CBC News as saying, “This is a low point for the Liberal party and it is a dark spot on Canada’s record as a defender of human rights.”

In an interview to US news channel CBS , the prime minister said that Islamic terror must be overcome with “openness and respect”.

Interestingly, the government announced ceasing of all airstrikes on Islamic State targets by 22 February, reported CBC News .

Such statements and actions are being seen as an indication of Canada’s Liberal government’s weak resolve to fight the global menace of the Islamic State, be it in Iraq and Syria or in Afghanistan.

Afghanistan is in an intriguing position. Already weakened by Taliban’s terror, the Islamic State is gradually finding traction among the local population. Canada, an all-weather friend of the US, had been a part of the coalition alliance that overthrew the Taliban in November 2001. Canada’s official engagement in the war-torn country got over in March 2014 . However, it was not before the country lost 158 soldiers to enemy bullets.

Economically speaking too, Canada is an important contributor to Afghanistan’s economic rebuilding. Between 2002 and 2013, it disbursed around $2.26 billion in aid . In 2012, the then prime minister Stephen Harper pledged $227 million in development aid between 2014 and 2017. In addition, Afghanistan is reported to have a treasure trove of minerals worth $1 trillio n . This makes the country economically attractive to Canada.

Thus, Canada is a major stakeholder in the stability of Afghanistan.

The attack on the Canadian embassy security guards must act as a wake-up call for Trudeau. A soft approach towards Islamic terror might not be the answer anymore.