China issued a stern response to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s remarks on the 50th anniversary of Canada’s diplomatic relations with China, when he made reference to the East Asian giant’s “coercive diplomacy”.
During a news conference on Tuesday, Trudeau said, “We will continue to work with China for advancing Canadian interests and Canadian producers. At the same time, we will remain absolutely committed to working with our allies to ensure that China’s approach of coercive diplomacy, its arbitrary detention of two Canadian citizens, alongside other citizens of other countries around the world is not viewed as a successful tactic by them.”
The Canadian PM added, “It has put a significant strain on Canada-China relations and we will continue to highlight our concern for the Canadians detained, our concern for the protection of human rights in places like Hong Kong, in Xinjiang province with the Uighurs.”
He went on to say that Canada would work with “fellow like-minded nations” to “impress upon China that its approach to internal affairs and global affairs is not on a particularly productive path for itself or for all of us”.
Trudeau’s comments about Beijing’s ‘coercive diplomacy’ were reiterated by Foreign Affairs Minister François-Philippe Champagne, whose statement indicated that Canada is “build[ing] a new framework for relations with China” and will endeavor to “hold the Chinese government accountable to its international obligations”.
In response, Zhao Lijian, a spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry said that the Trudeau administration had displayed ‘hypocrisy’ and ‘weakness’. He said, “We express our strong dissatisfaction and firm rejection towards the Canadian side deliberately confusing facts and issuing wrong remarks.” He added that any ‘difficulties’ in bilateral ties are purely “due to the Canadian side detaining the innocent Chinese citizen Meng Wanzhou”.
Bilateral ties between Canada and China have been strained since December 2018, when Canadian police arrested the chief financial officer of Chinese telecommunications firm Huawei, Meng Wanzhou, on a US extradition warrant for bank fraud.
At the time, China retaliated by detaining Canadian nationals Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig and charging them with spying. Additionally, Chinese courts have since sentenced three Canadians to death for drug-related charges.
On a strategic front, Canada has irked China by moving its warships through the Taiwan Strait; China heavily patrols the area with fighter jets.
These spats have had an impact on Canada’s China-dependent economy. For instance, following the Meng incident, Canadian farmers and the agrifood industry suffered heavily due to restrictions on shipments of pork, beef, canola seeds, and soybeans to China.
Moreover, Canada appears to have walked away from free trade negotiations with China over these developments. Foreign Affairs Minister Champagne said in September, “I don’t see the conditions being present now for these discussions to continue at this time,” denouncing to China’s “assertive, coercive diplomacy”, a point which PM Trudeau made again this week.
Tensions flared up last week, when China levelled that Ottawa was “bullying” Beijing by holding the Huawei CFO under house arrest. Canada’s ambassador to the United Nations (UN), Bob Rae, pointed to the fact that China has “arbitrarily arrested and detained two Canadian citizens” and said that it was impossible for a nation such as Canada, with such a small population, to ‘bully’ “one of the great superpowers of the world”.
Likewise, Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan asserted that China was practicing “hostage diplomacy” and called on NATO partners to maintain pressure on China to ensure a “rules-based order”.
Comments by senior Canadian government officials on the “coercive” nature of China’s diplomatic and economic engagements are not out of line with what has been said by ‘like-minded’ nations. For instance, Australian foreign minister Marise Payne has previously rejected China’s “economic coercion” tactics, as Beijing has imposed a series of trade restrictions on Australian exports due to PM Scott Morrison’s calls for an investigation into the coronavirus and his administration’s growing ties with the United States (US).
In a phone call with US President Donald Trump on Saturday, Trudeau thanked the US for its support in “seeking the immediate release of the two Canadian citizens arbitrarily detained by China”. China recently granted the Canadian government consular access to the two detainees.
China Hits Back at Canadian PM Trudeau’s Accusations of “Coercive Diplomacy”
Bilateral ties between Canada and China have been strained since December 2018, when Canadian police arrested Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou on a US extradition warrant for bank fraud.
October 15, 2020
IMAGE SOURCE: THE CANADIAN PRESS VIA APCanadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau