Opinion | Canada must learn from Meng Wanzhou saga to stay out of US-China confrontation
- Ottawa’s failure to act firmly and fast in the early days of the extradition saga left it snared in a geopolitical tussle with little bearing on its own national interest
- Its tepid response to the fallout also left the field open to Canadian hardliners to lead the conversation on China
A group of Canadian parliamentarians have recently joined the Formosa Club, a grouping of European members of parliament founded in October 2019 to “coordinate and strengthen” the parliamentary organisations that promote relations with Taiwan.
Such an initiative risks pulling Canada into a conflict with Beijing over Taiwan, a confrontation in which Ottawa has nothing to gain and everything to lose.
This development is only the latest of several recent moves in Canada that are sure to irk China. None has the official support of the Canadian government.
In fact, the administration of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has made a point of not appearing to be connected with these initiatives, even though, in this latest action, a member of his team is presented as leading the effort.
In May, the Halifax International Security Forum, an organisation that receives funding from the Canadian government, awarded its John McCain Prize for Leadership in Public Service to Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen.