Helping other nations who are in greater need than we are, and representing and fighting for peace IS helping Canadians.
We have a good reputation in most of the world. So much so that the asshole Americans for decades have been sewing canadian flags on their backpacks because people treat them way better.
Don't get me wrong, we should absolutely help Canadians. But if Canada ends up helping 1,000 starving children in Africa, my first instinct isn't going to be "well fuck that money should be spent here". 1,000 starving kids is 1,000 starving kids. I don't fucking care if they're purple.
Same logic with big ticket things around the world like this. It's sometimes worth the cost. The world is bigger than just you and your fellow Canadians.