OTTAWA — The Conservatives are accusing Mark Carney of flip-flopping on Iran after the prime minister said he would be leaving the door open to a Canadian military deployment.

Carney originally expressed unequivocal support for the U.S. commencing strikes on Iran last weekend — then said later he did so with regret because the bombing campaign seems inconsistent with international law.

While the prime minister has said Ottawa has no plans to join the military campaign, he added Wednesday that he could not categorically rule out a military deployment if allies called on Canada for help.

Conservative foreign affairs critic Michael Chong says Carney is being incoherent and his statements contradict each other.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte is playing down the idea of an alliance response to Iranian actions, saying nobody has been talking about such a move since NATO member Turkey reported the alliance’s defence system shot down an incoming ballistic missile.

Meanwhile, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand says she was not aware that her parliamentary secretary, Rob Oliphant, had said days before the U.S. attack that Ottawa does not believe in military action that isn’t sanctioned by the United Nations.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 5, 2026.

Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press