this post was submitted on 29 Mar 2025

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Canadian PM Carney rejects boosting trade ties with China, points to Europe (www.theglobeandmail.com)

submitted 1 week ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

11 comments fedilink hide all child comments

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/31793106

[Canadian Prime Minister] Mark Carney Wednesday rejected accusations from his Conservative rival that he’s beholden to Beijing and said he thinks Canada’s trade-diversification strategy should prioritize boosting commerce with “like-minded countries” in Europe instead of China.

The Canadian government is trying to shift trade away from the United States in the face of growing protectionist tariff threats from U.S. President Donald Trump and his challenges to Canadian sovereignty, where he argues that Canada should be annexed as the “51st state” because it allegedly can’t exist without the U.S.

Asked if Canada should boost trade with China as it tries to reduce trade with the U.S., Mr. Carney pointed to Europe instead.

“We want to diversify with like-minded partners. That’s why I went to Europe in my first days as Prime Minister,” the Liberal Leader said during a campaign stop in Windsor, Ont., referring to a visit to Paris and London where he talked about Canadian companies playing a greater role in Europe’s military buildup.

“There are partners in Asia with whom we can build deeper ties,” Mr. Carney said. “But the partners in Asia that share our values don’t include China.”

[...]

top 11 comments

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 6 days ago

I think he should be open to mutually-beneficial economic dealings with Beijing, but not until they stop helping Russia sidestep sanctions. I believe some 30% of Moscow's export is done through China in 2024. Being friendly with China right now would be no bueno

[–] [email protected] 24 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I'm very much not a fan of China, but I'd still say "prefer Europe but be open to China too." Canada's uniquely positioned to be able to trade well with both, the same advantage that America had before they turned isolationist and squandered it.

That said, I expect that applying reasonable standards to China will result in a lot of trade opportunities being cut off anyway. I just don't want them cut off preemptively without trying first.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

We have tried with the utterly stupid FIPPA Harper signed with China (which we are locked in to until 2045).

It hasn't helped Canadian firms much at all. Chinese investment in Canadian O&G and land/housing ownership is through the roof tho.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 week ago

Oh no, conservative echo chamber got it wrong again

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 week ago

I am hoping this is just for the election season, to sidestep potential conservative attacks of being too close to China. Canada should be expanding trade with the biggest partners available off both the Pacific and Atlantic coasts, not just one of them.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 week ago (2 children)

That's pretty dumb, Carney. Our current situation is a product of too much focus on too few export markets. Refusing to expand trade with China is choosing to act with a limb tied behind our back for no good reason.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 6 days ago

I suspect this is one part electioneering and one part being cautious. I expect collaboration with China to increase if he wins the election, whether we consider them our "preferred" partner or not.

Besides, China is already the technology leader in many respects and becoming in more of them over time. If we enter a world where China sells workstation/server class CPUs for a tenth of the cost of US brands, we won't be able to ignore that cost reduction.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 6 days ago (1 children)

China is just another US, only less sympathetic.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 6 days ago

And despite everything, short of a real war we will continue to trade with the US at a reduced capacity. Which is fine. The goal of our trading strategy ought to be diversification to avoid a monopsony-like situation where any individual buyer is buying enough of our exports to severely damage us if they stop (that is, the situation we're in now).

[+] [email protected] -6 points 1 week ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (1 children)

Sad, frustrating, loser move. Europe also announced today that it was going to reduce fines on US big tech out of fear. If we sell aluminum to Europe, Trump will cry that is unfair too, and all the little sycophants will gaslight their people into accepting Trump demands more.

Renegotiating security and trade relationship after election.

If China is excluded as an alternative, then Canada will be left with no other choice than to accept all US demands. Lower economy/exports, more US weapons purchases, continued hatred of US enemies.

Dysfunctional Canadian politics are such that no party/candidate will oppose this "pre surrender" to US. So down the shitter we go, everyone.

Those like minded allies are all cowering individually too. Promising massive US investments to get spared. Guarantee they will take a "fuck Canada" approach.

[–] [email protected] -1 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

diversify with like-minded partners

Liberal values based supremacism is no better than nazi supremacist values as an excuse to diminish/destroy Russia, or to persevere in failure to do so at greater cost. Prioritizing such hate necessarily destroys our lower priority ability to keep those values. Our supremacist hate through a veneer of values is furthermore directly manufactured by our 1 to 1 colonial relationship with the US. Our sister colonies share our values only because that is the easiest vector to corrupt and colonize countries: democracy through CIA control.

Oligarchist, property/wealth, and Corporatist supremacism keeps getting stronger in US blessed democracies, while economic pluralism and prosperity grows in US accused authoritarian states. Democracy is provably not a defense against extreme corruption, and it should be more obvious every election, that if voting could ever improve anything, it will be made illegal.

The collective weakness of our sister oppressed nations in face of US empire, and its increased level of aggression towards all of us, is made directly weaker by not understanding that China and Russia have values closer than what we say our values are. Determination to resist US empire. Just because we accept more divisiveness for our liberalism than those countries doesn't mean incompatible values, which should be improving the world while improving ourselves.

Decades of propaganda have made Canadians internalize "shared values and culture with US" as hatred for US enemies. You cannot simultaneously keep your propagandized identity and understand the US's threat.