Error Not Sign of Weakness: Former PM Clark

[tuvor]

Former prime minister Joe Clark says people expect new governments to adjust when they make mistakes, but worries the Conservatives don't share that sentiment.
When Prime Minister Stephen Harper put Canada's support behind Israel following a war with terrorist group Hezbollah in July that saw large areas of Lebanon targeted by air strikes and a limited ground offensive, some critics accused the Conservative leader of showing his inexperience by taking sides in the Middle East.

The comparison that inevitably arose was to another conservative government that made a similar mistake in 1979. Days after taking office as prime minister, Joe Clark made what he now describes as a "significant mistake" by promising to move Canada's embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a promise that sparked outrage as most countries, including Canada, have never recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital since ownership of the historic city lies at the heart of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

Embassy caught up with Mr. Clark, who also served as foreign affairs minister under Brian Mulroney, at the Centre for International Governance Innovation's annual conference in Waterloo last weekend to discuss his thoughts on the foreign policy being followed by Mr. Harper's government. The following is an edited transcript of that conversation.

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