A superpower situation
Re: The recklessness of Trudeau’s China policy. Terry Glavin, Dec. 13
As 2018 draws to a close and we head into an election year, Trudeau finds himself in a situation that many before him have been in. Comments he made some years ago in which he admired China’s dictatorship and their ability to get things done, will come back to haunt him and will be played over and over again during the election campaign.
The courting of China in pursuit of trade, which has been a key feature of Trudeau’s three years in power, is at an end — at least for the foreseeable future. The arrest of the Huawei executive and subsequent detention of two Canadian citizens in China, has seen to that, and any pursuit of placating China and attempting a trade relationship at this time would be politically suicide. It would be almost a certainty as well that we will be joining Australia, New Zealand and the U.S. in sidelining Huawei as our 5 eyes partners have done.
Gone are the days of Christmas vacations to the Aga Khan’s island, as the series of events in China and at home have created a crisis that the Liberals will be hard pressed to over come. Instead they have been forced into the middle with pressure from both sides and a Canadian populace beginning to question their leadership.
Jeff Spooner, Kinburn, Ont.
Mr. Glavin ought not be head-shaking with the puerile attempts of our Prime Minister at handling anything bigger than legalizing pot, as we all know that this PM is not a serious man as was Stephen Harper, or even his late father Pierre, whose coat tails must be well frayed from being ridden this far.
Though Huawei was indeed smart enough to pervade North American telecommunications with its suspect tech gear, its CFO Weng was no less reckless than Trudeau in exposing herself by living in Vancouver, within easy reach of the U.S., instead of the safe haven of her home land. Perhaps she thought the worst she might face here is reading her novels in French only while in custody.
R Michaels, Burlington, Ont.
The penultimate paragraph of this column was a concise and useful statement that Canadians need to hear. But the focus on Mr. Trump overshadowed this point, unfortunately.
The Americans are Canada’s allies, and we are very lucky to live next to them. Mr. Trump will not be President forever but Trudeau’s reign might well continue for some time, given the trends we see, and with just such diatribes being generated by pundits.
Barbara Okun, Ottawa
Last I looked, Canada was not a superpower, and we need more than ever to avoid goading the three rogue superpowers — namely Trump’s America, Putin’s Russia and Xi’s China. Each of these countries has the power to meddle in the affairs of other nations, from a distance, and with impunity, which is what Superpowers do.
By making it seem like Meng is a bargaining chip in his own private trade war, Trump has made life way more complicated for Canadian diplomats, business people and tourists to China. And, as China promised, they can mess us up good.
I have plenty of faith in Canadian rule of law, but that’s a painstakingly slow process that is temporally at odds with issues like humiliation and saving face.
Ron Charach, Toronto