Why did Canada not challenge Iran’s appointment to the UN nuclear weapons body? – Nationally
Conservative MPs are calling out Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government after his MPs failed to follow their allies in challenging Iran’s nomination to two United Nations bodies – including one to review the landmark nuclear weapons deal.
On Monday, Iran was promoted to the position of vice president at the UN’s monthly review conference of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, better known as the NPT.
In the general assembly on April 27, the US, UK, Germany, France, Australia and the United Arab Emirates opposed or distanced themselves from Iran’s nomination to the NPT conference. Canada did not speak.
On Tuesday, Foreign Minister Anita Anand spoke to reporters on Parliament Hill to give what she called an “explanation.”
“I want to be absolutely clear that no vote was taken on this issue, and in particular, my officials who spoke twice yesterday on the Iran issue were absolutely clear, that there is absolutely no support from the Canadian government for the Iranian government or any of the leadership positions it holds,” he said on Tuesday.
But Canada did not directly challenge Iran’s nomination to the NPT conference in two video clips Global Affairs Canada sent to The Canadian Press.
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Instead, political department director Richard Arbeiter talked about the broader issues of non-proliferation and Tehran’s actions in the Strait of Hormuz after the United States launched its bombing campaign.
“Disarmament will not gain momentum if safeguards are considered optional, or if non-compliance is met with ambiguity,” he said on April 27 on the marble floor of the General Assembly.
“The ongoing conflict linked to Iran’s nuclear program underscores that these are not debates, but realities with serious regional and global consequences.”
At the UN Security Council that day, Arbeiter spoke about Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and its attacks on its neighbors, but he did not refer to the NPT committee.
“Canada expresses its full solidarity with the countries in the region that have suffered from Iran’s aggression,” he said.
Earlier this month, UN Watch, a group that mainly represents Israel, also noted that the bloc of Asian countries nominated Iran on April 8 to the UN Economic and Social Council, ECOSOC, which informs how UN programs work.
Canada and many of its allies did not object. The American delegation was the only one to object to Iran’s nomination on April 8.
Conservative MPs, including Melissa Lantsman and Vincent Ho, have raised the issue in the House of Commons several times in recent weeks. Eight days after the ECOSOC vote, the federal government issued a response.
“As the position was not contested, there was no opportunity for a vote. The vote to choose the nominees will be at the United Nations General Assembly in November,” MP Mona Fortier, Anand’s parliamentary secretary, told the Commons on April 16.
“Canada is working with partners to fight Iran in the UN elections and will continue to do so at all times.”
Opponents of Iran’s involvement in the UN have raised Tehran’s crackdown on anti-regime protesters and the Iranian diaspora abroad, as well as its attacks on Gulf states after the US and Israel began bombing Iran.
“The government’s silence on Iran is a vote in its favour, no matter what they tell you,” Lantsman told Parliament. “Liberals have never had a single position on Iran, only any position that costs less.”
© 2026 The Canadian Press
