Hundreds of foreigners and dual-citizens are in Canada with the purpose of creating front companies to procure weapons parts and technologies that they then export to their home countries. And they often go unpunished.

That's according to a Wikileaks cable that documented a meeting in 2008 in Ottawa between Canadian and U.S. export and border control officials.

The cable reports that George Webb, strategic export controls division manager for the Canada Border Services Agency, struck a "discordant note" when he told Frank Ruggiero of the U.S. State Department that he faced many challenges in enforcing sanctions and export laws.

Webb was cited as saying his "hands were full targeting hundreds of mostly Iranian and Chinese foreigners and 'lots of Canadian dual-nationals' involved in 'non-legitimate businesses,'" according to the cable.

"They create front companies for the purpose of procuring defense technologies," Webb said in the cable, which was written by a U.S. State Department official and approved by Ruggiero.

Webb also complained that after CBSA officials make the arrests, the suspects are often released on bail by judges, and they "simply disappear," according to the wire.

He said he was aware of about 25 court cases involving export control violations, but only one that resulted in jail time.

"Canadian Judges do not appreciate the seriousness of these crimes," Webb was quoted as saying.

The U.S. officials were particularly concerned about the lack of co-operation from Canada on two alleged violations.

In one case, according to the cable, CSIS officials had blocked co-operation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on an individual in Canada believed to be involved with the fabrication of missile parts for Iran.

In the other case, the U.S. officials were concerned about the sale by Pratt and Whitney Canada of U.S. military-grade helicopter engine technology to China for use in Chinese attack helicopters. U.S. officials complained that there was a lack of regulatory oversight and Canadian law enforcement officers simply didn't seem interested in helping address the alleged violation.

"The ICE officers argued that until the price to be paid for export control violations is the same in Canada as...it is in the U.S. -- prison -- adversaries will persist in abusing Canada as a venue from which they can illegally procure and export U.S. defense technologies," the cable said.

In the course of the conversation between the U.S. and Canadian officials Bob Paulson -- now the newly minted RCMP commissioner -- admitted it was often difficult to prosecute export violators. As a result, he said the "greater good" was often achieved by other means.

A note in the cable added: "This was understood to mean exploiting wrong-doers for their intelligence value or turning cases over to regulators for civil sanction."

At the time, Paulson was the RCMP's director general for national security criminal investigations and operations.