Charles Burton: What a Biden Presidency means for Canada-Chinese Relations

 

• Charles Burton: What a Biden Presidency means for Canada-Chinese Relations

https://cdainstitute.ca/charles-burton-what-a-biden-presidency-means-for-canada-chinese-relations/

It is hard to know how Biden will manage China. He has said that he regards Xi Jinping as “a thug”. He also has identified the Chinese policy towards the Turkic Muslims in Xinjiang as a genocide. He hopes to lead an international campaign to pressure, isolate, and punish China. So, from that point of view, his stance on China is much more aggressive than the Canadian government’s. The issue is whether or not Biden will carry on the general orientation of the Trump administration under current Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo with regard to how the U.S would stand for the international rules based order, which includes, respect for freedom, democracy, rights, and entitlements of citizens in those areas.

If Biden decides to negotiate a grand bargain with China that would include concerns that weren’t central to the Trump administration, such as climate change, nuclear non-proliferation, particularly relations with North Korea, and other issues like global health, then he might be prepared to make concessions to the Chinese

Burton: Canada should manage our China policy more honestly (opinion piece in Ottawa Citizen)

Burton: Canada should manage our China policy more honestly 

https://ottawacitizen.com/opinion/burton-canada-should-manage-our-china-policy-more-honestly

The argument that “ghosting” might obtain the release of Michaels Kovrig and Spavor, or avoid further economic retaliation that punishes Canadian business and farmers, has proven wrong-headed. After 711 days, two exemplary Canadian citizens are still in prison hell in the People’s Republic of China, neither of them deserving such vulgar abuse as Beijing tries to force Canada to comply with China’s political demands. Beijing obviously does not reward passivity with gestures of goodwill, and if the federal government continues to give in to the PRC’s amoral “wolf warrior diplomacy,” expect China to be thus emboldened to demand that Canada offer successive concessions in years ahead.

Burton: Canada takes note as China gets tough with Australia

Canada takes note as China gets tough with Australia

https://www.thestar.com/opinion/contributors/2020/11/12/canada-takes-note-as-china-gets-tough-with-australia.html

Those who have urged that we treat the panda kindly, lest he show his claws and draw blood with his fangs, will urge that Canada continue ignoring the strong recommendations of Commons committees to support endangered Hong Kong democracy activists or to sanction Chinese officials complicit in the Uighur genocide. That perspective implies it would be best that Canada simply risk our alliance with the U.S. by releasing Meng Wanzhou, approving Huawei 5G and continue to allow PRC acquisition of Canadian dual-use technologies.

While Australia has strongly supported Canada over Kovrig and Spavor, it is unlikely that Ottawa will dare to stand with Australia in the face of Chinese bullying, beyond our usual carefully worded “expression of concern.” But Australia’s relations with China today are almost certainly Canada’s tomorrow. As the RUSI report notes, citing the ex-Australian PM and China scholar Kevin Rudd, “the Chinese Communist Party despises and takes advantage of weakness, while it respects strength.”