{"id":135120,"date":"2020-12-17T00:14:52","date_gmt":"2020-12-16T21:14:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/canadas-foreign-policy-agenda-in-2021\/"},"modified":"2020-12-17T00:14:52","modified_gmt":"2020-12-16T21:14:52","slug":"canadas-foreign-policy-agenda-in-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/canadas-foreign-policy-agenda-in-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"#Canada&#8217;s foreign policy agenda in 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2e20d98db18\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2e20d98db18\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/canadas-foreign-policy-agenda-in-2021\/#The_China_problem\" >The China problem<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/canadas-foreign-policy-agenda-in-2021\/#The_rise_of_authoritarianism\" >The rise of authoritarianism<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/canadas-foreign-policy-agenda-in-2021\/#The_collapse_of_the_world_order\" >The collapse of the world order<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/canadas-foreign-policy-agenda-in-2021\/#A_search_for_new_friends\" >A search for new friends<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;<strong>#Canada&#8217;s foreign policy agenda in 2021<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<div>\n                                                                        In the iconic <em>West Wing<\/em> episode \u201cHartsfield\u2019s Landing\u201d\u2014recently adapted by most of the original cast in a special urging Americans to vote\u2014that romantic ideal of a president, Jed Bartlet, navigates a geopolitical crisis while juggling chess <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">game<\/a>s with staff. He urges them to \u201csee the whole board.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>We hesitate to suggest that Canadian cabinet meetings sound anything much like an Aaron Sorkin <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">script<\/a>. But there is much at play in the world outside of that often less-than-romantic White House, no matter who is sitting in it. For all the relief that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau may be feeling at the end of the Donald Trump presidency, there is plenty of strategy, chaos and opportunity elsewhere.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>READ:\u00a0The smiley, friendly, cunning Fran\u00e7ois-Philippe Champagne<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Of course, in 2021, Canada\u2019s biggest foreign priority will still be in Washington, as the Joe Biden administration gets settled in and lays out its priorities. \u201cThat will be a filter through which our other foreign policy issues are considered,\u201d says Roland Paris, an international affairs professor at the University of Ottawa and a former adviser to Trudeau. But big challenges remain with another superpower, China; with a rise in illiberalism across the board; and with much-relied-upon global institutions under threat.<\/p>\n<p>Trudeau\u2019s government has never positioned itself to build a major international legacy, and domestic priorities around the pandemic and the economy are rightly taking up most of the oxygen. Parliament makes things tricky, too. \u201cDon\u2019t expect innovation from a minority government during a time of pandemic,\u201d says Bessma Momani, a senior fellow at the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) in Waterloo, Ont.<\/p>\n<p>But, last we checked, Canada does have a foreign minister\u2014quite an energetic one\u2014in Fran\u00e7ois-Philippe Champagne. With the Canada-U.S. relationship headed for calmer waters and the pandemic becoming a new normal, what will his job look like\u2014and what will Canada\u2019s chessboard look like\u2014in 2021?<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_China_problem\"><\/span>The China problem<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Canada\u2019s biggest foreign policy minefield will continue to be its relationship with China. The chief issue is China\u2019s unjustified detainment of Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor since late 2018, a tit-for-tat move after Canada arrested Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou according to our extradition agreement with the United States.<\/p>\n<p>Tensions have run high since then, with diplomacy in an icy holding pattern and trade disputes peppering the past couple of years, as China becomes a more aggressive actor worldwide. Dissonantly enough, Canada\u2019s overall economic ties with China have been largely unaffected by the political crisis, explains Gordon Houlden, director of the China Institute at the University of Alberta. Writ large, China\u2019s economic growth is deeply tied to the health of the world economy, and our allies, too, have deep stakes there. Not to mention that it is near-impossible to make real progress on global emergencies such as climate change without China\u2019s co-operation.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>READ:\u00a0How to deal with a hostage-taking, extortionist China<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Those complexities are why it\u2019s so difficult to get an aggressive coalition together to threaten China on the Michaels, let alone its military ambitions or its human rights abuses\u2014most egregiously the widespread internment of Uighur Muslims in Xinjiang province. Canada\u2019s ambassador to the United Nations, Bob Rae, has stuck his neck out to call for an investigation into Uighur genocide, angering Beijing. Allies may be reluctant to join that call. \u201cWe can be on the side of the angels, that\u2019s one thing, but I don\u2019t expect rapid improvement in those situations,\u201d Houlden says.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s not to say that nothing meaningful can happen. As China continues to erode democratic self-government in Hong Kong, Canada can offer asylum to dissidents and advocate for the more than 300,000 Canadian citizens who live there.<\/p>\n<p>Conditions will be \u201cquite ripe\u201d under a Biden presidency for allies to band together on other easy-to-agree-on issues, suggests former Trudeau adviser Paris, including addressing Chinese intellectual property theft and its interference in other countries\u2019 domestic politics. But Houlden doubts that the Canada-China relationship will warm up any time soon\u2014and says there\u2019s little a Canadian government of any s<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/trip-and-travel\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"10\" title=\"Trip &amp; Travel\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">trip<\/a>e can do about it. \u201cI\u2019m very pessimistic that any combination of efforts by any country or group of countries, including the U.S., will free the two Michaels until the Meng Wanzhou case is resolved. There\u2019s no movement.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_rise_of_authoritarianism\"><\/span>The rise of authoritarianism<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Outside of im<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">media<\/a>te pressures around the pandemic, the world\u2019s greatest challenge in <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/general\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"3\" title=\"General\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">general<\/a> is \u201cthe rise of illiberalism,\u201d as CIGI\u2019s Momani puts it. Liberal democracies are no longer on the perceived upswing\u2014not just because of power-grabbing despots (or despotic wannabes, <em>cough<\/em>, Trump, <em>cough<\/em>) but because electorates increasingly doubt their institutions.<\/p>\n<p>Some of the allies with which Canada regularly breaks bread are trending this way. Hungary has become more overtly authoritarian, but important NATO ally Poland is headed in that direction, too, Momani says. Even in countries such as France, growing blocs of protectionist populism could come to strain international co-operation.<\/p>\n<p>The world\u2019s largest democracy, India, has a government that is becoming more intolerant of religious diversity, has stoked violence against the Muslim minority and is being accused of human rights abuses in the locked-down Kashmir region.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>READ:\u00a0The real reason authoritarian populism is on the rise: it\u2019s simple<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Canada should speak up in bold, specific terms where atrocities are committed with impunity, join with like-minded allies and back up those words with investment in civil society where possible. But there is a delicate strategic balance to maintain, argues Momani. And Canada isn\u2019t perfect itself, despite its tendency to take a moralizing outward stance.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe will have to continue to have relations with unfavourable governments,\u201d she says. \u201cWe don\u2019t have a big stick, so we should be careful what we say.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s the people-to-people exchanges\u2014dual citizens, diaspora communities, international students and trade ties\u2014that are the lifeblood of bilateral relationships. These networks are the reason Canada can and should explore opportunities where problematic politics currently prevail, in places such as Brazil and the Philippines. And ultimately, Momani says, they are a better conduit to spread Canadian liberal democratic values than speeches from unsteady ground.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_collapse_of_the_world_order\"><\/span>The collapse of the world order<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Canadian experts argue that amid a global pandemic, and during this rise in authoritarianism, there has never been a more important time to make sure a rules-based international system is functioning. \u201cWe have thrived as a country because of the growth of the multilateral rules-based order. We\u2019re not big enough to have global influence like the United States, China today or Russia at the time. The consistent attacks, and undermining of our existing global institutions, is a peril for us,\u201d says Nicolas Moyer, president and CEO of Cooperation Canada. \u201cWe\u2019ve had a taste for what a world without friends might look like,\u201d Paris adds, \u201cand it is bitter for Canada.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While the U.S. is likely to reverse recent withdrawals, including from the Paris climate agreement and the World Health Organization (WHO), the domestic popularity of an outgoing president who promised a disengagement from the world shows we can\u2019t necessarily trust them as the globalization leaders they once were, Moyer says.<\/p>\n<p>Reforms are undoubtedly needed at the United Nations and institutions such as the WHO and the World Trade Organization (WTO), but to dismantle them entirely is to give up on the idea that international norms should be striven for, let alone that they are achievable. To Champagne\u2019s credit, Canada has already established an \u201cOttawa Group\u201d to discuss WTO modernization. With the WHO, Canada has a real opportunity, says Moyer. \u201cThis is one of those places where Canada could play a really leading role as a friendly and productive global actor.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Canada can lead rhetorically but also with investment, Momani says. \u201cThe mood globally is that many countries are going to be pulling their funding, or decreasing their funding. So there\u2019s an opportunity for us to really put our money where our mouth is.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"A_search_for_new_friends\"><\/span>A search for new friends<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Outside the crucial relationships that this country prioritizes\u2014ones that Trudeau will heavily influence himself\u2014other small, strategic moves could pay major dividends later. More than half of Canada\u2019s GDP relies on exports. Companies could better leverage the market access they already have through free trade deals with Europe, Japan, Australia, Vietnam, South Korea, Chile and others, Paris says. They shouldn\u2019t put all their eggs in one America-shaped basket. \u201cWe do need a strategy of diversi\ufb01cation,\u201d says the University of Alberta\u2019s Houlden. \u201cThe centre of gravity of the international economy is moving to Asia. Canadians are blissfully unaware of that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Canadians would do well to revisit their strategy in Africa, too, notes Moyer. That\u2019s where the world\u2019s fastest-growing populations are. But in recent years, some Canadian missions to Africa have shuttered. Even modest diplomatic investments there could yield significant fruit later. Moyer posits: \u201cWouldn\u2019t it be extraordinary for Canada to be the first country to negotiate a free trade agreement with the African Union?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Of course, foreign policy is rarely a ballot-box question. But experts agree that the sort of long-term investments that would keep Canada relevant in the coming decades require cross-partisan support and political will. While their focus may be keeping each other in check, political adversaries should be able to get on the same side of the chessboard and, together, think several moves ahead.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<p><em>This article appears in print in the January 2021 issue of<\/em> Maclean\u2019s <em>magazine with the headline, \u201cOttawa\u2019s gambit.\u201d Subscribe to the monthly print magazine <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/secure.macleans.ca\/loc\/MME\/head_subscribe\">here<\/a>.<\/em><br \/>\n<span class=\"ctx-article-root\"><!-- --><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/general\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">General category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/politics\/canadas-foreign-policy-agenda-in-2021\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#Canada&#8217;s foreign policy agenda in 2021&#8221; In the iconic West Wing episode \u201cHartsfield\u2019s Landing\u201d\u2014recently adapted by most of the original cast in a special urging Americans to vote\u2014that romantic ideal of a president, Jed Bartlet, navigates a geopolitical crisis while juggling chess games with staff. He urges them to \u201csee the whole board.\u201d We hesitate&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":135121,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/FOREIGN-AFFAIRS-CANADA-CHAMPAGNE-SMITH-NOV18-750x422.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[22974,86745,67806,70410,86746],"class_list":["post-135120","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-canada","tag-canadian-foreign-policy","tag-editors-picks","tag-foreign-policy","tag-francois-philippe-champagne"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135120","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=135120"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135120\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/135121"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=135120"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=135120"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=135120"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}