Odd Man Out: How Stephen Harper Changed Canada's Relations with the United Nations

Since coming to power in 2006, Prime Minister Stephen Harper has changed how Canada views the world, and how the world views Canada. This is evident through Canada’s strained relations with the United Nations. Harper has used his government’s antagonism with the UN to bring Canada closer to Israel than before. He has shown disdain for the UN treaty process, including the Arms Trade Treaty, the Convention to Combat Desertification, and the Convention on Cluster Munitions. He used the UN umbrella to court support for his Maternal, Newborn Child Health initiatives, masking an overall cut in development spending. A combination of political ideology and domestic political necessity lies behind this new foreign policy direction. That has meant smashing the brand of past Liberal governments and crafting policies that can appeal to Harper’s core base, while attempting to attract other more mainstream supporters.