On the anniversary of the deadly 9-11 terror attacks, Conservative Leader Stephen Harper re-affirmed his commitment to fighting terrorism at home and overseas, but ruled out taking Canada鈥檚 military mission in Iraq and Syria a step further.
On the campaign trail Friday, Harper said he will not put Canadian boots on the ground in the volatile region.
Harper also called Russia鈥檚 military involvement in Syria 鈥渄angerous.鈥�
"The Russian government and (President Vladimir) Putin remains a government that complicates, in dangerous and unhelpful ways, security situations all over the world," Harper said at a campaign stop in Victoriaville, Que.
As part of its commitment to the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State militants, Canada has been launching air strikes over Iraq and Syria. Ottawa also dispatched 69 special forces to train Kurdish fighters in Iraq.
"As long as the most violent and barbarous individuals in the world are committing massacres, as long as they're happy to boast about it, and as long as they continue to threaten to do the same things to Canada and Canadians, this Conservative government will remain in the international coalition fighting ISIS," Harper said Friday.
He also told supporters that voters face a choice between 鈥渟ecurity and risk鈥� when they head to the polls on Oct. 19.
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau, however, has maintained that his party would withdraw from the bombing mission and shift it to a 鈥渢raining mission,鈥� while putting a bigger emphasis on aid.
The NDP, meanwhile, said it would bring Canadian Forces in the region home immediately, end the military mission and focus on humanitarian issues.
"Canada would put an end to our participation in the combat mission in Iraq and in Syria immediately. We've been clear on that since Day 1,鈥� NDP Leader Tom Mulcair said.
With a report from CTV鈥檚 Katie Simpson and files from The Canadian Press
