Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, 48, said on Monday that the United States bears responsibility for Iran’s downing of a Ukrainian airplane last Wednesday, which killed all 176 passengers on board.
“I think if there were no tensions, if there was no escalation recently in the region, those Canadians would be right now home with their families,” Trudeau said in an interview on Monday.
Fifty-seven Canadians were among those killed last Wednesday after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fired a ballistic missile at a commercial Boeing 737 plane. The strike occurred during an Iranian attack on Iraqi air bases housing U.S. military personnel. Trudeau said the incident is “something that happens when you have conflict and war.”
“Innocents bear the brunt of it, and it is a reminder why all of us need to work so hard on deescalation, moving forward to reduce tensions and find a pathway that doesn’t involve further conflict and killing,” Trudeau continued.
Trudeau’s comments come ahead of a Canadian-hosted meeting in London on Thursday, where the prime minister says he expects “full admission, acknowledgment of responsibility, and some form of compensation.”
Trudeau’s comments echo the sentiments of some Democratic contenders for president, such as former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg. Buttigieg, 37, also suggested that the U.S. was to blame for the Iranian strike on the plane, labeling it a consequence of “an unnecessary and unwanted military tit for tat.”
Innocent civilians are now dead because they were caught in the middle of an unnecessary and unwanted military tit for tat.
My thoughts are with the families and loved ones of all 176 souls lost aboard this flight. https://t.co/zWaVgWxfdL
— Pete Buttigieg (@PeteButtigieg) January 9, 2020
