Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird will arrive in Jeddah on Wednesday, where he will meet with high-ranking Saudi officials to discuss the situation in Iraq, the civil strife in Syria and the threat posed by Islamic State (IS) militants.
Baird is due to meet with Crown Prince Salman, deputy premier and minister of defense, and Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal on Thursday.
“Minister Baird will also discuss the strong and growing relations between Saudi Arabia and Canada,” said Canadian Ambassador Tom MacDonald here Tuesday.
MacDonald underlined the importance of Baird’s visit and said that “Canada has decided to play a significant role in the Middle East region, which is currently witnessing turmoil on all fronts.”
He said that the Canadian foreign minister, who is currently visiting India, will also hold talks with other Saudi officials and would visit Kuwait during this trip.
“Canada values its relationship with these two important players — Saudi Arabia and Kuwait — in the Middle East,” said Baird in a statement before his departure to the Kingdom.
“We continue to have frank and productive exchanges on a wide range of issues, including economic prosperity, development, education, human rights and regional security”, said Baird, who will discuss the ongoing threat posed by IS to regional and international security with Saudi officials.
“We consider the Kingdom and Kuwait important allies in combating violent extremism and terrorism,” he added.
While in Kuwait, Baird will meet with Canadian military personnel and their Kuwait Armed Forces colleagues at Camp Canada, the Operational Support Hub for Canada’s mission in Iraq.
“The brave men and women of the Canadian Forces have once again answered the call, this time to combat the threat of this barbaric terror group,” continued Baird.
He said Canada has announced a number of measures designed to combat the brutality of IS and help its victims. These measures include contributing CF-18 fighter jets, along with surveillance, refueling and heavy-lifting aircraft to the US-led coalition to degrade and destroy IS, up to 69 military advisers to advise and assist security forces in Iraq and more than $38 million in humanitarian and security assistance.
Canada is already assisting in the delivery of military supplies to Iraqi security forces fighting IS and has sent military advisers to support them, he noted.
Canada has committed more than $28 million to respond to the humanitarian crisis in Iraq so far in 2014.
Of this amount, $18.8 million is for populations affected by civil unrest and $9.6 million is for Syrian refugees.
Another $10 million is for non-lethal security assistance to provide equipment.
Saudi, Canadian foreign ministers to hold talks on key regional issues
Saudi, Canadian foreign ministers to hold talks on key regional issues
