Canadian Peacekeeping

To say Canada played an important role in World War Two would be an understatement. Canada’s significance in the war will forever be remembered as one of the greatest, and the Battle of Hong Kong is a prime example of just that. The fact that Canada provided troops even with the optional not to, and the struggles the troops endured not only on the battlefield, but as prisoners of war, and the amount of physical and moral support the Canadian soldiers gave to the British soldiers in Hong Kong is proof that Canada was a major contributor in World War Two.

When one thinks of Canada, he/she is most likely to stereotypically comment on a subject regarding hockey, beavers, maple syrup, and cold weather. However, not many stop and wonder about how Canada became the peaceful nation it is today. Throughout Canada’s relatively short and brief history, it has managed to flourish into a strong and powerful nation. Canada’s peaceful identity has been formed with meaningful historic events that have occurred throughout our history.It’s identity has been characterized by Lester B. Pearson's role during the suez canal, their involvement in the Vietnam war, and its engagement in peacekeeping missions around the world.

Canada's contributions to the war were extremely significant. They made many sacrifices and lost a great amount of lives, but for those who sacrificed their lives for our country they in turn helped us to achieve the many goals we are proud to say we have accomplished then and now. The majority of Canada had a great impact on WW2. They were helping Britain financially, providing the Allies with supplies for the war effort and persuading our citizens to join the army, factories, and air force. Canada had also become one of the most significant military powers with the world's fourth largest air force, the world's third largest navy and an army with six divisions.

When people look back and remember the First World War, they often remember the assassination of Franz-Ferdinand, the sinking of the Lusitania, or the Zimmerman telegram. Not often do they recall the role that Canada played in the war. However, Canadians were a significant factor of the Allies’ success. Although Canada only possessed two Navy warships at the time and was known for being a peaceful country, she supplied over 60,000,000 shells to the Allies’ troops and endured over 67,000 casualties and 173,000 men wounded across multiple battles. With that said, it could also be argued that internal political conflicts in Canada afflicted their overall contribution to the war. In fact,

During the Vietnam War (1955-75), was Canada taking a role of an Arms Merchant or a Peacekeeper? Factually, approximately 30 000 Canadians volunteered to fight in the war and also, there are evidences of Canada's involvement in secret, corrupt military missions with the U.S . To this day, it is still debatable whether or not Canada did the “right thing”; and despite the fact that Canada sided with the U.S. and created a bigger, unnecessary “fire” to the Vietnam War, the country managed to show their genuine side which was a peacekeeping, fair-minded nation. Notably, there were significant times when this country confidently committed actions that may be classified as just and responsible. This includes the ‘Draft Dodgers’ incident, how Canada accepted refugees from South Vietnam, and Canadian activisms against war.

Canada has been placed in the Korean war book of remembrance for their contribution and to pay the respects of the wounded and deceased veterans. Canada had approximately 30,000 troops had been involved in the war. 27,000 served on land and about 3000 served in the sea. Canada had lost 516 men but only 312 were from combat on the battlefield. Many soldiers had volunteered and conscription was not needed. The Korean War Book of Remembrance contains the names and numbers of those Canadian soldiers who have sacrificed their lives in the war. The book of remembrance is to show respect to our former veterans of the Korean war. “Governor General, bad farewell to a contingent of Canadian troops bound for Korea.” “We are many proud of you who have volunteered to take the Canadian flag into action.” The quote mentioned by the governor general states that many Canadian soldiers have been courageous enough to participate in the war and that this shows independence to their country. There was no conscription needed to force soldiers into the war. In addition, many Canadian soldiers had served and sacrificed voluntarily in the war and should be commemorated by many

"Canada entered World War I as a colony and came out a nation..." a quote from Canadian journalist Bruce Hutchison. The First World War, or more commonly known as World War I or WWI, was a war centred in Europe, which in time became global, considering all the colonized nations of Europe were expected to fight, as well. WWI gave many of these colonized nations, and their people a chance to prove their worth, by fighting for the countries that “owned” them. Thenceforth, they could finally create an identity for themselves that was separate from the rest of Europe, they were longer another colony of places such as the British Empire. Following along with that idea, Canada is one of the best examples of a country that used the war as a way to

During the course of the Second World War, Canada evolved into a powerful, resourceful nation that was needed by the Allies. Canada contributed significantly to the Allied war effort during World War II where they fought on land, water and air and assisted indirectly from the home front. On land, they fought in numerous battles and campaigns such as D-Day, Hong Kong, and the Italian campaign. However, they were also strong and resourceful when it came to air and naval forces in battle. But even outside of battle, Canada was still able to make a contribution through its civilians.

Canadian identity wasn’t always stereotypically related to polar bears, maple syrup and beavers. Various movements in the 20th century began the development of Canadian identity. Aspects of Canadian society such as technology, peacekeeping and immigration gave Canada a distinct identity. Technology distinguished Canada as a developed nation amongst others with advanced transportation, communication and electricity. Peacekeeping is also an essential part in Canada's identity as it displays effort and desire for world peace, which is something many individuals embrace. Lastly, diversity in Canada is recognized worldwide and plays a major role in Canadian identity. Through technology, peacekeeping and immigration during the 20th century, Canadian

Canadians pride themselves on being a “peacekeeping country” and many believe that peacekeeping represents a defining aspect of Canadian identity because it reflects fundamental values, beliefs and interests. Canada has been a leader in peace operations since its development that spearheaded by a Canadian. In fact, Canada’s role as peacekeeper remains the main focus of the Canadian military after its invention around 60 years ago, originally started by a Canadian. Their efforts have gained an international reputation for Canada as a significant contributor to international peace and stability. While Canada has an exemplary history in UN peacekeeping, the current extent of its contribution, both in terms of peacekeeping personnel and percentage of funds to peacekeeping missions, are on a clear decline. The belief that Canada is a peacekeeping country is misguided because recent Canadian commitment shows a sharp decline in Canadian participation in UN peacekeeping. Surprisingly, as of March 2007, Canada ranked 59th out of 114 countries in terms of military and police contributions to UN operations. Despite Canadian declined involvement in peacekeeping during the last decade, it still remains a valuable and important mission that greatly deserves Canadian resources including monetary support, resources and personnel.

Unquestionably Canada was a major contributor to the United Nation’s mission in South Sudan. Canada supported South Sudan in establishing a long term stable economy capable of supporting their population. In addition, Canada protected the rights of civilians in South Sudan by supplying the necessary resources to the United Nations and South Sudan. Furthermore, Canada assisted the establishment of a non-corrupt democratic government in South Sudan. Thus, the peace operation of South Sudan from 2012 to 2016, Canada played a crucial role in supporting long term economic development, protecting the rights of citizens and establishing a stable government.

Along with Canada’s lack of contribution, Canada’s political figures do not consider Canada a peacekeeper. The previous Prime Minister Stephen Harper had his own opinion of Canada and peacekeeping. Stephen Harper says “(Canada) out of the peacekeeping business”. The fact that the Prime Minister explicitly stated that Canada has no relevance to peacekeeping is mind boggling considering how relevant Canada used to be. When Canada’s own prime minister makes a statement about their prominence it proves how much Canada has changed. Although through Justin Trudeau,

In many ways, Canada used the Korean War to improve their relationship with the U.S. by showing their support for them. Canada's American influence evoked its support towards the Republic of Korea, who was under attack from the communist nation of North

During the first world war, Britain, and Canada’s allies demanded multiple resources from Canada. The allied countries were France, Serbia, and Russia. Since they were all in a coalition, they agreed to help each other, and send needed resources that would assist them in winning the war. Some common resources that were sent included food, munitions, money, and men. Since Canada during WW1 was still developing and expanding, the allies thought it was a great place to collect the necessities from, as they were in an abundance. Canadians at the commencement of the war were very eager to fight, as the war had been glorified, and made to look adventurous. So without any hesitation, Canada sent over as many resources the allies demanded. Canada then became responsible for supplying resources to the allies soldiers, and their own. Since so much effort was going towards the

On June 25th, 1950, North Korean forces crossed the 38th Parallel and invaded the Republic of Korea (South Korea). This was a battle between democracy and communism, where the United Nations supported the South Democrats while the Soviet Union in cooperation with China supported the North Communists. Most Canadians knew nothing about Korea during the 1950s. Despite that, the Canadian army still sent an entire brigade group to military operations there. Besides the two world wars, the Korean War remains Canada’s third bloodiest oversea conflict as it left 516 Canadians killed and at least 1,200 injured. Canada made significant military contributions to the Korean War as was demonstrated by the 2nd Battalion of the Princess Patricia’s