Why Canada Must Rethink Its Relationship With China
China’s threats, interference, and human rights abuses demand a sober reassessment of Canada’s strategic priorities.
When Friendship Becomes a Liability
For decades, Canada has struggled to define its relationship with China. From diplomatic overtures to trade partnerships, successive governments have tried to balance economic interests with national values. In recent years, as China’s behaviour has grown increasingly aggressive, authoritarian, and repressive both domestically and internationally, that balancing act has reached a breaking point.
It is no longer enough to ask whether cooperation is possible. We must ask whether it is safe.
Canadian foreign policy has often been guided by pragmatism, by the hope that engagement might lead to reform, or at least to mutual benefit. Unfortunately, the reality of today’s geopolitical climate demands more than hopeful pragmatism. It requires clarity, and it requires courage.
After years of global conflict and the erosion of trust in traditional allies like the United States, it is tempting for many Canadians and Canadian officials to imagine that a closer relationship with China might offer some stability. Nonetheless, this is precisely the wrong moment to entertain such illusions. The Chinese Communist Party has shown, time and again, that it does not play by the rules of democratic diplomacy. Instead, it leverages trade, legal threats, cyberattacks, and even hostage diplomacy to get what it wants. The notion of a “deep friendship” with Beijing is no longer just naïve. It is dangerous.
The Warnings We Cannot Ignore
In its 2022 Indo-Pacific Strategy, Canada officially labelled China a “disruptive global power.” That was not an exaggeration: the strategy outlined a vision of engagement that was clear-eyed about the threats China posed to international norms, to human rights, and to the safety of Canadian citizens.
Even as these warnings became policy, China’s actions only escalated.
In June 2024, Beijing issued sweeping new guidelines interpreting its 2005 Anti-Secession Law. These new rules threaten individuals around the world, regardless of nationality, with harsh criminal penalties, including the death sentence, for merely advocating Taiwanese independence. That includes Canadian citizens of Taiwanese descent, university professors, students, and advocates who have worked for decades to promote Taiwan’s inclusion in international bodies like the International Civil Aviation Organization. Beijing’s message was chillingly clear: not even Canadian soil protects you if you speak in favour of Taiwan’s autonomy.
This is lawfare, a deliberate attempt to extend the Chinese Communist Party’s control over thought, speech, and academic freedom far beyond its borders. It is a threat not only to Taiwanese Canadians but to every Canadian who believes in the rule of law and freedom of expression.
A Record of Hostility, Not Partnership
Some may argue that China remains too important a global power to alienate. Still, this logic collapses under even a brief review of China’s behaviour toward Canada in recent years.
In 2018, Canada arrested Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou at the request of an American court. In retaliation, China imprisoned two Canadian citizens, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, for over 1,000 days. They were denied basic legal protections and spent much of their time in solitary confinement. Their imprisonment was retribution.
In 2019, two scientists at the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg were removed after it was discovered that they had shared sensitive information with Chinese institutions, prompting a national security investigation. In the years since, extensive reporting from outlets such as Global News and the Globe and Mail has revealed patterns of Chinese interference in the 2019 and 2021 Canadian federal elections. Beijing funnelled undeclared money to campaigns, manipulated student voters, and ran disinformation campaigns through social media and covert operations.
The Chinese government also operates secret police stations on Canadian soil, intimidating members of the Chinese diaspora and stifling dissent in Canadian cities. It has done nothing to stop the export of counterfeit goods like adulterated honey, or worse, fentanyl, an opioid killing thousands of Canadians annually.
This is not the conduct of a trusted partner; it is the conduct of a hostile regime.
Values Cannot Be Sacrificed for Trade
Some argue that China’s abuses can be overlooked in favour of economic opportunity. Despite this, there is little evidence to support the idea that China has acted in Canada’s national interest.
China’s courts are not as independent as they are in Canada. The conviction rate exceeds 98 per cent, and torture is common. Activists, journalists, and even lawyers are routinely disappeared. Feminists, union organizers, and religious minorities are under constant surveillance or outright persecution. To suggest that Canada should negotiate an extradition treaty with a regime that routinely violates basic human rights is to abandon any claim to a principled foreign policy.
Even the economic benefits are vastly overstated. Canada’s trade deficits with China have widened, and Beijing has never hesitated to use trade as a weapon. After Canada spoke out on human rights issues, China retaliated by banning Canadian canola exports, harming Prairie farmers.
Opinion polls show that Canadians are open to international cooperation but not at the expense of our sovereignty or our values. The public has grown weary of hearing political leaders, particularly from Justin Trudeau, call for “more engagement” with a regime that jails Canadians and threatens our elections.
Trudeau’s Legacy of Misplaced Trust
Much of this drift toward appeasement began under former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. In 2013, he famously remarked that he “admired China’s basic dictatorship” for its efficiency in decision-making. Though the comment was brushed off by some as youthful stupidity, Trudeau’s actions suggested something more than a passing admiration.
In 2016, Chinese billionaires gained exclusive access to private events with the Prime Minister. The Liberals contributed over $250 million to China’s Asian Infrastructure Bank. They were late to ban Huawei from Canada’s 5G networks, despite pleas from our Five Eyes partners and repeated warnings from security agencies.
During the pandemic, when the world needed transparency, China lied. Still, Canada sought its help in vaccine development, a deal that quietly collapsed. The result was unnecessary delay in Canada’s vaccine rollout and more lives lost.
At every turn, Trudeau seemed more concerned with preserving the illusion of friendship than facing the reality of China’s actions. Whether this stemmed from ideological blindness or political convenience is beside the point. The cost was paid by Canadian citizens, and it continues to accrue.
A New Strategy for a Safer Future
Canada must now forge a foreign policy grounded in realism. We should deepen our partnerships with democratic allies in Europe and Asian nations like Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and India. We should expand defence cooperation and increase academic, technological, and cultural exchanges with nations that share our commitment to pluralism and civil liberties.
This does not require cutting off all communication with China. However, it does mean ending the fantasy that engagement alone can change the behaviour of an authoritarian superpower. China’s leadership respects strength, not sentiment. They respond to strategic coherence, not nostalgia for an era of open trade.
We must safeguard our institutions, protect our citizens, and ensure that Canadian soil is not a playground for foreign agents. Most importantly, we must send a clear message that democratic values are not for sale.
What You Can Do Next
If you believe Canada must stop sleepwalking through its relationship with China, now is the time to speak out. Support candidates and parties that take foreign interference seriously. Ask your local representative where they stand. Stay informed. Share this article with a friend. Subscribe or consider buying me a coffee to help keep this work going.
Democracy doesn’t defend itself. That’s our job.
And then there is FIPA, a bilateral investment treaty aimed to protect and promote foreign investment between Canada & China ratified in 2012 by the Harper Gov. FIPA is in effect for a minimum of 15 years and can impact investment decisions for up to 30 years. ummm ...