Retired army colonel fined, reprimanded for insulting British senior officer

A retired, highly decorated Canadian soldier pleaded guilty, was fined and given a severe reprimand on Thursday over an insulting remark he made about a British senior officer while on a NATO exercise.

Former colonel Rob Kearney, who fought in Afghanistan, made the remark about British Brig.-Gen. Irena Dzisiewska in his tent in the presence of two other officers.

The incident took place during what's known as a command post exercise in Romania in October 2023.

Kearney faced a military court martial and pleaded guilty to one count of conduct which is prejudice to good order and discipline.

The military judge fined Kearney $3,000 and ordered a severe reprimand to the 60-year-old reservist who had originally faced a total of five charges.

Kearney referred to the female brigadier general as a "f---ing c---t."

Dzisiewska was not in the tent at the time, but another British officer was and filed a complaint with the Canadian military. 

The military court was told on Thursday that Dzisiewska criticized Kearney and his team, which had the responsibility of briefing two other allied generals. During a separate, second briefing, Dzisiewska renewed her complaints.

It was afterward, in his tent, that Kearney made the remark.

After the incident, Kearney apologized and took responsibility for his remark. He also co-operated with Canadian military police who investigated the incident.

Kearney had served in the regular force of the Canadian Army for over 30 years.

Over the span of his career, he received 15 military decorations, including both a Canadian and a U.S. Meritorious Service Medal for his time in Afghanistan.

He retired in 2012 but returned to the reserves a few years later where he held a number of senior advisory positions at National Defence Headquarters before becoming assistant chief of staff at the Allied Rapid Reaction Corps in Innsworth, United Kingdom.

He was returned to Canada and has since retired from the military.