Saudi severs diplomatic and economic ties with Canada
▶ The envoy to Riyadh is now ‘persona non grata’ and has been given 24 hours to leave the kingdom
Saudi Arabia has recalled its envoy from Ottawa and expelled the Canadian ambassador after the country called for the immediate release of Saudi activists who had been detained.
The kingdom also froze business with Canada because it would “not accept interference in its internal affairs or imposed diktats from any country”, the Saudi Foreign Ministry tweeted.
The ministry said Canada’s ambassador, Dennis Horak, had 24 hours to leave the country, and it announced the “freezing of all new commercial and investment transactions”.
“The kingdom announces that it is recalling its ambassador to Canada [Naif bin Bandar Al Sudairi] for consultation.”
Mr Horak is also Canada’s representative to Yemen, Bahrain and Oman.
The UAE expressed support for the Saudi stance.
“We cannot but stand with Saudi Arabia as it defends its sovereignty and its laws, and takes the necessary steps to do so. We cannot accept that our laws and standards be pressured or compromised,” Dr Anwar Gargash, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, wrote on Twitter.
“Some countries might believe their experience allows them to interfere but we reject it.”
Bahrain said it also supported the Saudi decision. The Bahraini Foreign Ministry said Canada’s criticism of Saudi Arabia was “based on totally erroneous information that has nothing to do with reality”.
The Saudi action could further affect Canada’s economy after the US imposed tariffs on imports of Canadian steel and aluminium in May.
Saudi Arabia said yesterday that it was expelling the Canadian ambassador and had recalled its envoy, while halting business ties with Ottawa over what it called interference in its internal affairs.
The move came after calls by Canada for the immediate release of Saudi activists who have been detained.
“The kingdom announces that it is recalling its ambassador to Canada [Naif bin Bandar Al Sudairi] for consultation,” the Saudi Foreign Ministry said.
It said Canada’s ambassador had 24 hours to leave the country, and it announced the “freezing of all new commercial and investment transactions” with Ottawa.
Canadian ambassador Dennis Horak is also Canada’s representative to Yemen, Bahrain and Oman.
The move came after the Canadian embassy in Riyadh said it was “gravely concerned” over the news of arrests of activists in the kingdom, accompanied by a tweet by Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Chrystia Freeland expressing similar concerns.
“We urge the Saudi authorities to immediately release them and all other peaceful #humanrights activists,” the embassy tweeted on Friday.
Saudi Arabia’s response was unequivocal.
“It is very unfortunate that the words ‘immediate release’ appeared in the Canadian statement. It is unacceptable in relations between countries,” the ministry said.
The Saudi Foreign Minister, Adel Al Jubeir, issued a short statement through tweets, saying: “The kingdom does not interfere in the affairs of other countries and will not accept any attempts to interfere in its internal affairs, and we will deal [with interference] with strong resolve’.
Mr Al Jubeir said that the “surprising Canadian position is based on inaccurate information. The arrests are subject to our judicial systems that guarantee their rights”.
Dr Anwar Gargash, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, supported the Saudi stance.
“We cannot but stand with Saudi Arabia as it defends its sovereignty and its laws, and takes the necessary steps to do so,” Dr Gargash wrote on Twitter. “We cannot accept that our laws and standards be pressured or compromised.”
Bahrain said it supported Saudi Arabia’s decision, as did the GCC. A statement from the Interior Ministers of the League of Arab states declared that they rejected interference in the internal affairs of Saudi Arabia .
A Bahrain Foreign Ministry statement said Canada’s criticism of Saudi Arabia was “based on totally erroneous information that has nothing to do with reality”.
The Saudi arrests come weeks after more than a dozen women’s-rights campaigners were detained and accused of undermining national security and collaborating with enemies of the state. Some have since been released.
A spokesman for the Human Rights Council in Saudi Arabia said the kingdom was among only 36 out of 197 countries that had submitted their annual human-rights report to the UN.
The Saudi action against Ottawa could further affect Canada’s economy after the US imposed tariffs on imports of Canadian steel and aluminium in May.