Canada knows what to do to reset ties

If Canada’s Ambassador to China Dominic Barton really wants to reset the current chilly relationship between Ottawa and Beijing, he failed to identify what had caused the freeze while saying that the release of two Canadians detained by China and resetting the relationship are his top priorities.

Barton made the remarks in testimony he gave on Wednesday to a special House of Commons committee in Canada studying the strained relationship between the two countries.

While it is good to know the Canadian side, too, feels concerned about the current standoff between the two countries and wants to do something to change the undesirable picture, it should be aware that the key to resetting bilateral ties lies in it releasing Meng Wanzhou, chief financial officer of the Chinese telecommunication company Huawei, who it is holding in detention at the request of the United States, which wants her extradited on spurious grounds.

Meng’s detention is nothing but political kidnapping. However, Canada has repeatedly tried to link her detention with that of two Canadians in China. Although the two Canadians were arrested in China shortly after Canada detained Meng in December 2018, the two sets of cases are unrelated.

China has repeatedly made clear that the two Canadians, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, are being held for crimes endangering China’s national security, and their cases are being handled in accordance with the State Security Law.

Ottawa should know the current chill in ChinaCanada relations stems from its blind participation in the campaign launched by the US against China’s telecommunications companies.

According to US media reports, the US administration will discuss further curbing exports to China and its flagship telecoms company Huawei later this month.

As the holding of Meng shows, Uncle Sam has a heart of stone when it comes to trying to blunt China’s competitive edge in next generation technology, and it is willing to stoop as low as it has to.

The US has so far failed to produce any solid proof to justify its allegations that products and services provided by Huawei are a security risk. Its use of overstretched long-arm jurisdiction and its global smear campaign against the Chinese company are both unfair and immoral.

That may well explain why even some of the US’ erstwhile allies are showing increasing defiance to the US pressure. The United Kingdom and European Union have just made positive regulatory decisions that enable Huawei to continue to be a participant in their 5G rollouts.

There is no reason for Ottawa to continue to yield to the US pressure and bear the consequences of straining ties with Beijing. Ottawa should make the right decision and release Meng as soon as possible, which is the only way it can mend the fences.