In fact, a recent poll indicates over two-thirds of Canadians are against the government getting involved in the current conflict in Iran. Indeed, 58% of respondents said they disapproved of the war. The survey done by Leger shows a surge in support among the Canadian public for neutrality. Only 25% are in favour of the war, with 67% calling on Ottawa to stop supporting both sides in the conflict.
The poll’s findings reflect a divided opinion on Canada’s role in foreign affairs. Only a quarter of those surveyed want their government to support the Canadian government siding with the US and Israel. At the same time, the same percentage supports funding Iran. On top of that, almost 1 in 7 Canadians said that Canada should try to support both sides of the conflict.
When breaking down across political affiliations, the trends in the poll are significant. Approximately 45% of Conservative voters said they would be very supportive of pledging the U.S. and Israel to military action against Iran. Just 18% of Liberal voters thought so. Gender differences emerged loud and clear. In fact, over one third (33%) of Canadian men approved of what the U.S. and Israel were doing, compared to just 18% of women.
Demographic factors played a major role in shaping attitudes on military support, particularly in relation to support for NATO. Support for defending another NATO member in case of war is strongest among older Canadians, with 69% of those aged 55 and above strongly agreeing. By contrast, 57% of Canadians aged 35 to 54 and 45% of younger Canadians aged 18 to 34 agree. Sixty percent are willing to see Canada send troops in defence of any NATO ally that Iran attacks. Moreover, more than half, fifty-four percent support committing US troops to protect Middle Eastern oil refineries and shipping routes.
Andrew Enns, Leger’s executive vice-president for Central Canada, said the significance of these findings can’t be understated.
“There’s lots of questions around the rule of international law.” – Andrew Enns, Leger’s executive vice-president for Central Canada.
Enns reiterated how serious the public’s desire for neutrality is. As a people, the Canadians I chatted with are wary of taking sides in an international conflict.
“I think you see that almost reflected a bit in the numbers in the sense that people, I think, quite frankly like us to be neutral.” – Andrew Enns, Leger’s executive vice-president for Central Canada.
He recognized a constituency inside of Canada who thinks that what Iran has done requires a stronger response.
“But then you do have that swath of Canada that sort of says Iran’s a bad country, maybe we should be more supportive.” – Andrew Enns, Leger’s executive vice-president for Central Canada.
The poll results are indicative of larger trends in Canadians’ attitudes toward military engagement, driven by economic concerns. Enns noted that with persistent inflation and difficult economic times, Americans are understandably cautious about new military spending.
“Canadians just don’t feel that they’ve recovered from some of that really high inflationary period.” – Andrew Enns, Leger’s executive vice-president for Central Canada.
He stated that increasing gas prices have brought new attention to what increasing food prices might look like in the future. This lack of clarity creates public reluctance to engage in foreign wars.
“I think seeing the rising gas prices and wondering and worrying about what that means for food prices down the road is disconcerting.” – Andrew Enns, Leger’s executive vice-president for Central Canada.
