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This long-winded preamble underscores the fact divining where and when Canadians might next fight in a distant foreign land is impossible; Liberals have been as likely as Conservatives to send Canadian troops to fight overseas; and, as has been demonstrated by the response to the refugee crises in Syria and Iraq and the tumult in Ukraine, Conservatives have been as likely as Liberals to provide generous humanitarian aid.

Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau has earnestly staked out different turf than Messrs. Chrétien and Martin.

An isolationist, he apparently believes Canada can somehow sit out the messy bits of the 21st century in eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa and, if one had to guess, the Far East, where China is slowly asserting its claim over a staggering amount of the Pacific Ocean, causing relations with South Korea, Japan, the Philippines and Vietnam to steadily worsen.

As a federal election looms, there are many trouble spots.

Bin Laden’s spiritual heirs remain on the offensive in Syria and Iraq, where they gleefully slaughter, rape and pillage whenever and wherever they can, and command their supporters overseas to carry out terrorist attacks in countries such as Canada and Australia.

An unwelcome complication is Turkey, where the government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan is increasingly unpredictable and authoritarian. Several Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia, quietly help the Islamic State of Iraq & Al-Sham while other parts of their governments oppose it.