Diplomacy

In the months leading up to the gulf war, Iraqi Ambassador Mohammed al-Mashat was Saddam Hussein's No. 1 apologist in the U.S. He appeared often on American TV, touting Baghdad's line while parrying questions from Ted Koppel and John McLaughlin. Then he vanished. Recalled to Baghdad shortly before the fighting began in mid-January, Mashat stopped first in Vienna, supposedly to seek medical treatment for his wife, and was not heard from again.

Until last week, that is, when authorities in Ottawa disclosed that on March 30 Mashat had arrived in Canada, where he was granted permanent residence as a financially independent retiree. As it turned out, according to British diplomats, Mashat differed privately with Saddam over the gulf crisis and thus never went back to Baghdad. Though he is not technically a political refugee, Mashat's case was expedited because he feared for his safety should he return to Iraq. ,

The ambassador's welcome in Canada, however, has not been wholehearted. Immigration Minister Bernard Valcourt said he was "furious" that bureaucrats had decided to accept Saddam's ex-defender without consulting government ministers. Complained Svend Robinson of the opposition New Democratic Party: "This makes us look like a dumping ground."