# Jean Chrétien

### Multilateralism was a policy choice, not military disengagement

The detail matters. On 27 March Chrétien acknowledged that a small number of Canadian service personnel were embedded with allied forces on non-combat assignments and described their instructions as limited to self-defence. That acknowledgement appears in [his parliamentary answer](https://openparliament.ca/debates/2003/3/27/jean-chretien-6/only/). On 1 April he also said Canadian naval deployments in the region involved pre-existing anti-terrorism commitments, not a decision to join the Iraq invasion, according to a further [House answer](https://openparliament.ca/debates/2003/4/1/jean-chretien-2/only/). These distinctions prevent a misleading assertion that no Canadian personnel were present in or near the theatre. Ottawa did not join the invading coalition as a country; the government maintained some separate alliance commitments. The policy thus demonstrates how executive decisions can reject a particular military operation while preserving broader diplomatic and security relationships.

## Dated facts

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## Methodology

https://factrail.ai/methodology

Canonical: https://factrail.ai/people/jean-chretien