Canadian Military Exports to
the Middle East & North Africa
(totaling almost $2 Billion, between 1990 and 2006)

For decades, Canadian governments -- Conservative and Liberal alike -- have
preached peace and human rights, while facilitating the steady flow of weapons,
ammunition, tear gas, armoured vehicles and many other military and so-called
"security" products to repressive, undemocratic regimes in the Middle East and
North Africa. These governments are responsible for widespread, violent and
systematic abuses of human rights, such as torture and murder. By exporting
military and police products to these countries, Canada is complicit in aiding and
abetting numerous U.S.-backed regimes that maintain power through brute force.

Inspired by popular revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt, and growing protests
throughout the region, the Coalition to Oppose the Arms Trade (COAT) has
compiled the available information on military exports from Canadian government
reports and has produced data tables for each recipient country in the Middle
East and North Africa.  (Click the flags or links, at left, to see data tables
compiling information on Canada's military exports to these governments.)

COAT's country tables show the value of "Munitions" exports in 22 categories
from "Group 2" of Canada's "Export Control List," as published in annual reports
by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT) called
"Export of Military Goods from Canada."  (Click here for all the Sources used
to produce the accompanying COAT data tables on military exports.)

According to official reports published annually by DFAIT  -- which unfortunately
only document some of Canada's military exports -- the Canadian government
permitted military sales valued at over $1.99 Billion to 16 countries in the
Middle East and North Africa between 1990 and 2009. 

Unfortunately, DFAIT's reports do not document the export of any "dual use"
military products, even when they have been sold directly to the armed forces
of foreign governments.  Neither do these DFAIT reports include any military
exports to the U.S., even though Canadian military products are assembled there
into complete weapons systems and then re-exported by the U.S. to other
countries.  Because of the inadequacies in DFAIT's transparency on Canada's
arms exports, the data assembled and displayed in these COAT tables is --
regrettably  -- incomplete. However, this is the best publicly-available information
on Canada's military exports to the Middle East and North Africa.

Human Rights: The links, at right, contain ample evidence on human rights,
labour rights, human trafficking and the exploitation of children within countries
receiving Canadian military exports. These links corroborate the assertion that
Canada should stop exporting tools of war and repression, especially to states 
where military and police have impunity, and human rights abuses are endemic.

COMPARATIVE TABLE:
 Canadian military exports to sixteen
recipient countries in Middle East and North Africa

This series of data tables was produced by the
Coalition to Oppose the Arms Trade (COAT). 

See COAT tables on small arms, light weapons & ammunition:
"Canadian Small Arms Exports
to the Middle East/North Africa"

See also, COAT's list of
"Canadian Munitions Firms
Exporting to Middle East/North Africa"