US embassy cable - 04OTTAWA3368

UNCLAS OTTAWA 003368 
 
SIPDIS 
 
INL FOR CARROLL, COAST GUARD FOR KEISERMAN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SNAR, MARR CA 
SUBJECT: CANADA: POSSIBLE SUPPORT FOR US COUNTER-NARCOTICS 
AIR RECONNAISSANCE IN THE CARIBBEAN 
 
REF: STATE 262028 
 
1.  Unclassified entire text. 
 
2.  Post delivered request for Canadian maritime patrol 
aircraft assistance to Foreign Affairs Canada on December 10 
as per reftel.  Deputy Director for Regional Security and 
Peacekeeping, Foreign Affairs Canada, Sarah Fountain-Smith 
responded on December 15 that the GoC was not yet in a 
position to respond, but will continue to explore the 
possibility of future cooperation.  She noted that her 
counterparts in the Department of National Defense had been 
told that Canadian military units quote can't take on 
anything new unquote, but ventured that by considering this 
US request for air reconnaissance assistance in terms of 
North American Security, there might be some flexibility down 
the line.  She noted that no decision would likely be made 
before the middle of January at the earliest. 
 
3.  Comment:  Given the state of Canada's current CP 140 
inventory (there are 17 aircraft in total and all of them are 
either in Canada's deployed operational squadrons or their 
one replacement squadron), Post suspects Canada may not have 
the capability in the short term to respond positively to the 
US request.  However, Canadian law enforcement officials 
informally told Post today that Colombian drug traffickers 
and money launderers in Canada are about to be designated 
national law enforcement intelligence targets.  Once this 
happens and it is made public, it may be easier for the 
Canadian Government to link the effectiveness of fighting 
Colombian drug runners and their surrogates in Canada with 
participating in maritime patrol aircraft deployments in the 
Caribbean. 
 
Visit Canada's Classified Web Site at 
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/wha/ottawa 
 
CELLUCCI