Great Lakes gunboats worry Canadians

09/29/2006

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia (AP)—A plan to arm U.S. Coast Guard boats on the Great Lakes with machine guns—a measure that has drawn fire from many Canadians—was sanctioned by Canada’s government three years ago, officials from both countries confirmed Thursday.

Earlier this year, the U.S. Coast Guard started training exercises on the lakes with live .30-caliber machine guns attached to several small boats.

The practice was temporarily suspended until November after complaints from ordinary Canadians and some politicians, including Toronto’s mayor, who claimed the move violated a treaty signed after the War of 1812.

But the commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard said it has become necessary to protect the border that runs through the lakes, and he said the old treaty no longer applies.

“(The weapons) are needed to secure nuclear power plants, security zones and the missions that we need to conduct on the Great Lakes,” Adm. Thad Allen said Thursday after three days of meetings with Canadian Coast Guard officials in Halifax.

Both countries signed an agreement in 2003 that allows armed boats on the Great Lakes “in the wake of the events of September 11, 2001,” but forbids such activity in Canadian waters, Allen said.

The U.S. Coast Guard wants to establish 34 permanent zones in the Great Lakes where crew members would be able to practice firing at floating targets. It is part of a broader American campaign to protect its borders from threats such as terrorism.

Toronto Mayor David Miller said U.S. officials are exaggerating threats from inside Canada.

“This has been the world’s longest undefended border for over 200 years,” said Miller, who has outlined his concerns in a letter to the prime minister.

“To allow the Coast Guard to re-arm is a very backwards step and a very concerning one ... It’s quite clear there are not floods of terrorists coming over the border from Canada to the United States.”

Cmdr. Brendan McPherson, a U.S. Coast Guard spokesman, said the exercises are limited to American waters, and there are safety measures in place to protect nearby boaters.

Warnings are broadcast on maritime frequencies before the exercises, and the Coast Guard has boats on the water monitoring traffic, he said.

“When we talk about these permanent zones ... we’re only talking about a couple of times a year, a couple of hours a day.”