The NATO mission in Iraq, which is headed by a Canadian general, has suspended its training mission following the U.S. drone strike that killed the military commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, General Qassem Soleimani.
NATO spokesman Dylan White said Saturday that the “the safety of our personnel in Iraq is paramount...NATO’s mission is continuing, but training activities are temporarily suspended.”
A senior Canadian government official, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the suspension, described the move as a “tactical pause.”
The NATO mission, which is run by Canadian General Jennie Carignan, has been advising Iraqi defence forces on how to keep ISIS from regaining a foothold in the country.
The senior source said the decision to pause the training was made while the mourning takes place for Gen. Soleimani and what Canada and its NATO allies expect is an “inevitable reaction” to his killing.
Iran has vowed to retaliate for the assassination of Gen. Soleimani, whose killing at Baghdad’s airport has thrown the region into chaos.
What is of particularly concern to Canada’s military and foreign policy leaders is the reaction of Iranian-backed Shia militia groups who were aligned to Gen. Soleimani, the source said.
“With the head cut off, what will the rest of the snake do? We are not sure. Will there be an unbridled, uncontrolled, undisciplined reaction, a revenge kind of rampage or not,” said the high-level source. “We don’t know what the reaction will be. We don’t know the intensity or the level of violence.”
The source said Canada and its NATO allies expect Iran will respond but they are unsure if it will be strategically focused on Americans or terror related.
The suspension of NATO’s training mission, where 253 Canadians are involved, does not affect the U.S.-led Operation Impact where Canada has approximately 600 soldiers servicing in Iraq, Kuwait, and Jordan and Lebanon as trainers and advisers.
Operation Impact, which is run out of Kuwait, includes air operations, explosive threat training, advising Iraqi forces and regional capacity building. The RCMP also have 12 Canadian police officers in Iraq, including members of the Ontario Provincial Police, Sûreté du Québec, Saskatoon and Halifax police.
The NATO mission in Baghdad was established in the fall of 2018 after three years of war against ISIS as a “train and assist” mission to help Iraqi security forces and government institutions.
The Canadian source said NATO forces have a great deal of freedom to travel even though they do have a protective force with them at all times.
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Robert Fife