The news went completely unnoticed last week. In a speech delivered first in Toronto then in Montreal before an audience of foreign policy specialists, economic leaders and NGOs, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mélanie Joly, revealed the two principles on which international relations will henceforth be based from Canada.
If the first — the defense of the country’s sovereignty — is at the heart of any foreign policy, the second — engaging in pragmatic diplomacy to the point of creating ties with countries with points of view different from ours — is a small revolution for a Canada known, under the Conservatives as under the Liberals, for the moral lessons that it gives to all of humanity and which no longer pass.
The Trudeau government, through the policy statement expressed by the minister, seems to have finally taken stock of the changes taking place in the world. “The tectonic plates of the world order,” Joly said, “are moving beneath our feet. And the structures that rely on them are fracturing. » The rules established after the Second World War by the West are increasingly contested, and not only by the disruptors of the day, China and Russia, recognizes the minister.
Face facts
A more in-depth analysis of what has been happening in recent years could have led the writers of this speech to affirm, without risk of being mistaken, that we are currently experiencing a period of change much more important than that which emerged in 1945. We must dating back to the end of the 19th centurye century and early 20the to see such an upheaval on the geopolitical, technological, economic and intellectual levels.
This new world which is taking shape and whose final form will take time to appear forces the Canadian government to face reality: democracies no longer dominate and the international system is made up of more or less authoritarian states, with multiple interests and divergent. It’s time to talk to everyone, even the states that are opposed to us.
And if words mean something, those used by the minister are unambiguous. They contrast with the position defended last year on this date by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland in a speech delivered in Washington. At that time, she painted a bleak picture of the international situation in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and called for a coming together of democracies to confront authoritarian regimes. Freeland traced the contours of three blocs, the good guys, the bad guys and the countries between the two invited to choose their side, which left little room for multilateralism as it has been defended by Canada for decades. Freeland did not rule out dialogue with dictatorships, but his remarks tended towards the erection of walls between the blocs.
Joly does not play in this register. She even rejects the American crusade between democracies and autocracies. “We must resist the temptation to divide the world into rigid ideological camps,” she said. Because the world cannot be reduced to democracies versus autocracies. East versus West. The North against the South. It would be naive, short-sighted and counterproductive to force the majority of the world into one or another of these categories. [… ] We cannot afford to close ourselves off to those with whom we disagree. » The conclusion follows: “If we refuse to engage, we create additional incentives for those who do not share our goals to unite. » From then on, said the minister, “I am someone who opens doors, not someone who closes them”.
And China?
Joly’s speech is frankly innovative and positions Canadian foreign policy on the side of realism. It will now have to find a concrete application in relations with China. If the second economic power in the world is never directly named, it is obvious that Ottawa has its eye on Beijing. Is the stage set for a thaw? This is to be hoped at a time when all Western countries are renewing and reorganizing their ties with China.
So, after seven years of estrangement where Australia and China kicked each other, the Australian Prime Minister is in Beijing this week to normalize the relationship. The highest level European leaders are coming to Beijing one after the other while the United States is increasing its meetings with Chinese leaders. Presidents Xi and Biden will hold a summit in San Francisco next week during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting.
In Canada, almost nothing. The Minister of the Environment’s simple visit to China a few weeks ago caused an uproar among the opposition parties. THE ” China bashing » has reached such a level here that it has even contaminated the armed forces. According to a staff document revealed by the daily The Citizen, the head of the armed forces, General Wayne Eyre, now believes that “China is at war with the West”, and therefore against Canada, and “that we must prepare for it”. No document from the Prime Minister’s office or Minister Joly has elevated the relationship between the two countries to this level of hostility.
If we want to speak to all the players on the international scene, then the government will have to learn to speak with one voice. In the meantime, the Joly doctrine is a good start.