Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird, on a visit in Jerusalem, said Monday Israel "has no better friend in the world than Canada" and he characterized delegitimization of Israel as "the new anti-Semitism."
The Canadian government supported Israel so strongly, he said, because it embodied the values Canada held dear and respects, and because it was "a beacon of light in a region that craves freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law."
"We shall always be there for you, and in front of you," the minister said as he attended the inauguration of the new seminars wing of the International School for Holocaust Education at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem.
Baird said the new wing will play a key role in ensuring humanity doesn’t forget the lessons of the Holocaust.
He slammed the "constant barrage of rhetorical demonization, double standards and delegitimization" of Israel. "Harnessing disparate anti- Semitic, anti-American and anti-Western ideologies, it targets the Jewish people by targeting the Jewish homeland, Israel, as the source of injustice and conflict in the world, and uses, perversely, the language of human rights to do so."
He also backed the call by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the Palestinians to resume peace talks without preconditions.
"By resisting temptations to apply preconditions to talks and by avoiding measures that would seek to prejudge the outcome of the talks, the Palestinian leadership could immediately take steps toward a more measured, stable transition to statehood," Baird, who met later Monday with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah, said.
Baird, who also met with Israel's President Shimon Peres,urged the Palestinian leader to make peace, recognize Israel and return to the negotiating table.
"Palestinians and Israelis deserve free states of their own," he said.
"They deserve to live in peace, security and with human dignity. To that end, both must use the responsibility of their freedom for good."