2. National Missile Defence
Given that: Canada may be asked to joint US plans for a new version of Star Wars, known as National Missile Defense (NMD), which is opposed by all other major countries, violates international law, and would lead to an arms race in space;
will you, if elected, work to ensure that the Government of Canada is in no way complicit with this or any other proposal for the weaponisation of space and that Canada officially oppse the US National Missile Defense program?
Background: The rationale for the US proposal to develop a National Missile Defence (NMD) shield is to protect the continent against nuclear attack by "rogue" states.
But numerous analysts have noted that the NMD would provide no protection from such an attack. Even its technical merits are unproven - two of three official tests of the guidance system failed outright.
NMD would undermine nuclear disarmament efforts by jeopardising the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and violate the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty.
Governments representing the majority of the world's population, including Canada's NATO allies, such as Britain and France, have condemned the proposal for NMD, and not one country has supported it.