The Canada/China Contortion Conundrum

"We are in a uniquely complicated spot."

"We are being borne along a current with very few options. So the idea that we can craft a way forward easily is wrong."

"They don't see it in Chinese thinking as an oppressive thing, they just see themselves in more benign terms as the leading civilization in the world, and that they ought to have an important say in the affairs of the world and even a dominant position."

"But it's not a Nazi-like military conquest of the world."

Gordon Houlden, director, China Institute, University of Alberta 

"It's been said that China doesn't have allies, it has markets."

"I attribute the Cold War spirit and the Cold War stresses, in largest part to China's actions, as well as the tone of their 'wolf warrior diplomacy', which isn't very diplomatic."

Margaret McCuiag-Johnston senior fellow, University of Ottawa, former member, Canada-China Joint Committee on Science and Technology

"It will require much more thought, it will require much more management of foreign policy."

"That will be difficult for everybody. It'll be particularly difficult for Canada because we haven't put much thought into our foreign policy for a long time, and we're going to pay a price in terms of the learning curve that we have to go up."

"That's the first step [Beijing releasing detained Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor] when I talked about China's assault on our sovereignty and our autonomy."

"It's sapping the will, it causes countries to feel that it's just impossible, it's too much work. And that was never Canada's approach in the past, but I worry that we've succumbed to that to a certain extent."

David Mulroney former Canadian ambassador to China 2009-2012

The U.S. Senate passed a bill aimed at competing with China on economic and other fronts. It wants clarity on U.S. strategy for working with allies. (Jason Lee/Reuters illustration)

 

U.S. legislation titled the Innovation and Competition Act, a 1,445-page bill is set to lay the groundwork for broad strategy on the part of America to enfeeble Beijing's plan to raise the country globally as a colossus of commerce, a guide to the world's perplexed over China's increasingly aggressive stance as the ultimate world-leading power. The Act identifies strategic industries where the recommendation is for the U.S. to ramp public support for quantum computing, advanced semiconductors and pharmaceuticals to continue to reflect America's preeminent global role.

It also proposes more substantial protections for America's share of critical minerals, expansion of research spending with an aim to strengthen cyber defence capabilities as primary objectives, among others. That same act places Canada in a role in sections of legislation; plans deeply consequential that will rework and reshape Canadian foreign policy for some time to come. This, as American officials spur forward on a protracted conflict with China for global supremacy; an issue observers refer to as the new Cold War.

That Cold War is in active engagement between the two giants on a number of fronts including cyber warfare, military expansionism, technological research, culture, infrastructure, and intellectual property. All areas incidentally, which in one way or another Beijing has stealthily intruded upon in the process enriching itself with the results of its cyber-scrutiny otherwise known as stealth-theft. There is little question that Canada's traditional neighbourly ties with the United States will inform its inclusion in the U.S.-led agenda dividing China and the U.S. where trade and national security are issues of huge importance./China impedes both at will; one as punishment the other as threat.

The links between Canada and the U.S. are historically strong and steadfast, culturally and politically. with the U.S. Canada's largest trading partner. An agreement between the two neighbours was signed to establish new supply chains for critical minerals and rare earths as defence against China's zeal in gaining rights and overwhelming ownership to both. Canada has been lax in deciding whether, like all other members of the Five Eyes intelligence group, it will shut Huawei out of its 5G upgrade.

On the surface the U.S. legislation is clear enough with its plans to uphold a "shared vision of democracy", maintaining the "rules based international order established after WWII", which China flouts with impunity. The loosening of export regimes between the two neighbours, protecting "critical defence-related technology", establishing open and transparent planning on infrastructure, co-operating on Arctic defence and energy connectivity, combating "industrial espionage" and deepening intelligence sharing "particularly in 5G telecommunications technology", all favour more secure ties.

And all specifically point at China's infamously notorious penchant for surveillance, espionage and hunger to acquire by foul means the intelligence and secrets of other countries. "We are in the midst of a fundamental debate about the future and direction of our world", stated U.S.President Biden in a public statement earlier in the year in response to a more bellicose, authoritarian China guided by President Xi Jinping who seized the temptation to step in where the influence of the United States has waned as it withdrew from various stations of U.S.-guided support across the world.

The Communist Party of China is invested in aggressively redressing its "century of humiliation" when the Western world advanced far beyond the capabilities that China brought to bear from the mid-1800s to mid-1900, a situation humiliating to a once-powerful nation. It focuses on a goal of re-asserting its proper place in the world as a leading nation whose influence and power can be challenged by no others, even as it challenges with the assurance of entitlement the lone global super-power as a has-been entity.

Implacably, President Xi awaits each opportunity with the patience of an ancient cultural tradition of self-assurance renewed. His mantra of "socialism with Chinese characteristics" has served him and his country well in a few short decades that has literally pulled the country from its bootstraps up, in economic advantage leading to its ambitious Belt and Road initiative expanding travel, trade and telecommunications links with Europe and Asia.

While bidding for economic supremacy since it joined the World Trade Organization, China has undermined multilateral institutions and the international rule of law. At one time President Xi in conversation with then-President Obama assured there was no intention to militarize the disputed islands he had built in the South China Sea that he had illegally preempted as China's sovereign right. They were soon enough militarized, the purpose for which they had been established. 

 

Multilateral institutions have been slowly succumbing to Chinese power plans where international settlements and diplomatic and industrial guidelines are set. Chinese nationals occupy leadership positions in some 40 United Nations institutions for engineering, maritime law, health, finance, atomic energy and dozens of other areas. A situation that would make even a cynic cringe over future implications where Chinese positions at the International Telecommunications Union, UN Industrial Development Organization, Food and Agriculture Association renders massive leverage to China.