The office of Public Safety Minister Vic Toews is placing the blame for the "stalled" process to transfer convicted terrorist Omar Khadr home to Canada squarely on the United States.Toews' office is disputing a New York Times report that pointed the finger at Ottawa over delays in Khadr's return.
The New York Times [url=http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/25/us/delays-keep-omar-khadr-at-guantanam... Saturday that Khadr's "limbo status is the result of bureaucratic delays in processing his application to transfer, especially within the Canadian government."
U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta cannot sign the papers to transfer Khadr home to Canada, the Times reported, until Toews formally asks for his return, which he has not done.
"Khadr has applied to the Americans for transfer. The Americans have yet to approve that transfer," said Toews' spokesman, Michael Patton.
[b]Patton said the transfer process begins on the Americans' side:[/b] Khadr applies to American authorities and, once his application is approved in the U.S., it is forwarded to the Correctional Service of Canada, which provides Toews with an "assessment." On the basis of that assessment, Toews approves or denies the application.
[b]"The report that the U.S. is waiting for Canada to ask for Khadr's return is incorrect," he said.[/b] "He has applied to return. That application has not been approved by the Americans and no decision on bringing him back to serve the remainder of his sentence has been made."
During a visit to Ottawa on Tuesday, Panetta said negotiations are "continuing" and that he will sign the transfer papers when they cross his desk.
"I don't have a specific timeline for signing it," Panetta said. "But once those arrangements have been made, obviously we will approve the transfer to Canada."...
Once the Americans give approval for the transfer, Patton said, it will be up to Toews to exercise his ministerial discretion and decide whether Canada will let Khadr return to Canada.
So far, Patton said, [b]Toews has never reviewed Khadr's file.[/b]
[b]"There are no negotiations between Canada and the U.S. on this[/b] at this point," Patton said.
[url=http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/canada/Federal+government+blames+sta... side is passing the buck to the other.[/url]