BREAKING NEWS

Canadian premier's tough security talk wins support as election looms

By REUTERS

FEBRUARY 20, 2015 00:44

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, battling for re-election in October amid a slowing economy and high-profile departures of key officials, is taking a hard line on security and the tactic is resonating in a region that could keep him in power.

The ruling Conservatives are tied in polls with the opposition Liberals and critics say Harper is using security fears to bolster his election prospects, a charge his team denies.

Canada has joined US-led air strikes against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Harper refers to a "war" on jihadists, calling them a menace who want to destroy Canadian society.

In contrast, US President Barack Obama says the threat posed by Islamic State should not be exaggerated and insists it and other radical Islamist groups do not pose an existential threat to the United States.

"Jihadist terrorism is not a future possibility, it is a present reality. Violent jihadism is not simply a danger somewhere else. It seeks to harm us here," Harper said last month as he unveiled a tough new anti-terrorism bill.

In the aftermath of two fatal attacks on soldiers in Quebec and outside Parliament last October - both by suspected "lone wolf" converts to Islam - the strong words are resonating in the mainly French-speaking province of Quebec. The province traditionally tilts more to the left than the rest of Canada and has been cool to Harper since he took power in 2006.

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