Friday, Sept. 13, 2002 1:08 p.m. EDT
Canada PM on 9/11: U.S. Had It Coming
Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien's suggestion during a TV interview Wednesday that the U.S. is partially to blame for the 9/11 attacks has officials on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border fearing a "meltdown" in relations between the two countries.
In remarks carried by the Canadian Broadcasting Company as part of its 9/11 anniversary coverage, Chretien seemed to be saying that the U.S. got what it deserved on 9/11.
"You cannot exercise your powers to the point of humiliation for the others," he told the CBC. "That is what the Western world - not only the Americans, the Western world - has to realize."
Chretien added that the West "is getting too rich in relation to the poor world" and that "the 11th of September is an occasion for me to realize it even more."
The interview was actually taped last July, but many took Chretien's remarks as a 9/11 anniversary message.
The prime minister's office issued a statement Thursday saying that his comments had been misinterpreted by the press, but some Canadians weren't so sure.
"His comments were ill-conceived," retired major-general Lewis MacKenzie told the Montreal Gazette Friday. "I'm not a great fan of blaming the victim," he complained before voicing fears about the damage Chretien's comments might cause in the U.S.
Theresa Hitchens, vice president of Washington's Center for Defense Information, told the paper that the Canadian PM's views won't go over well with the Bush administration.
"I'm sure the Republican right will have a meltdown," she observed. "It won't do anything to improve relations" between the two countries.
Canada PM on 9/11: U.S. Had It Coming
Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien's suggestion during a TV interview Wednesday that the U.S. is partially to blame for the 9/11 attacks has officials on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border fearing a "meltdown" in relations between the two countries.
In remarks carried by the Canadian Broadcasting Company as part of its 9/11 anniversary coverage, Chretien seemed to be saying that the U.S. got what it deserved on 9/11.
"You cannot exercise your powers to the point of humiliation for the others," he told the CBC. "That is what the Western world - not only the Americans, the Western world - has to realize."
Chretien added that the West "is getting too rich in relation to the poor world" and that "the 11th of September is an occasion for me to realize it even more."
The interview was actually taped last July, but many took Chretien's remarks as a 9/11 anniversary message.
The prime minister's office issued a statement Thursday saying that his comments had been misinterpreted by the press, but some Canadians weren't so sure.
"His comments were ill-conceived," retired major-general Lewis MacKenzie told the Montreal Gazette Friday. "I'm not a great fan of blaming the victim," he complained before voicing fears about the damage Chretien's comments might cause in the U.S.
Theresa Hitchens, vice president of Washington's Center for Defense Information, told the paper that the Canadian PM's views won't go over well with the Bush administration.
"I'm sure the Republican right will have a meltdown," she observed. "It won't do anything to improve relations" between the two countries.