报道称，加拿大外长计划派副手访华，以改善紧张关系，回应公众需求

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202404/1310722.shtml

GT记者发布时间：2024年4月17日

法新社周一援引一位了解此次访问情况的政府消息人士的话称，加拿大外交部长梅拉妮·乔利将派副手戴维·莫里森访华，以帮助缓解与中国的冷淡关系。莫里森访华“是其中的一部分”。专家周二告诉《环球时报》，加拿大公众对改善与中国的经济和政治关系的需求日益增加，尤其是在观察到中国与美国、澳大利亚和德国之间最近高层互动增加之后。

截至周二发稿时，中加双方均未发布有关此次访问的任何相关信息。

乔利本人自2021年出任加拿大外长以来，也未曾到访中国，部分原因是新冠疫情管控措施、中加关系降温等因素。

多家外媒报道称，2018年12月，美国在温哥华无理拘押华为高管孟晚舟，以及中国以间谍罪拘押两名加拿大人康明凯和迈克尔·斯帕弗，导致两国关系陷入冰点。

2023年，加拿大就中国新疆、香港、台湾等问题发表错误言论，军舰和军机多次跟随美国，以“航行自由”为名在中国沿海进行挑衅活动。

近期，加方多次炒作2019年和2021年所谓“中国干预加拿大大选”问题，中方对此多次予以驳斥，导致两国关系紧张。

据法新社报道，尽管若利从未访华，但中共中央政治局委员、外交部长王毅今年2月应若利邀请，在慕尼黑安全会议期间会见了若利，并谈到要对华“推行务实外交”。

据《环球邮报》报道，若利近来在谈及中加关系时，频频提到“推行务实外交”。报道还指出，若利的政治导师之一是加拿大前总理克雷蒂安，克雷蒂安在任期间助力打造中加关系“黄金十年”。

据法新社报道，随着加拿大副外长将访华的消息传出，加拿大商界要求双方修复关系的压力不断加大。

《温哥华商业报》1月报道称，许多加拿大企业担心中加之间的政治紧张局势阻碍了它们充分利用这个世界第二大经济体。

加中贸易理事会认为，加拿大工业正被美国、澳大利亚和欧洲的竞争对手蚕食，这些竞争对手正在抢占加拿大在中国的牛肉和宠物食品市场份额。

据《环球邮报》和全球电视网报道，由于近年来中加关系降温，加拿大的经贸利益受到严重损害。然而，美国和澳大利亚等一贯与加拿大结盟，甚至在对华问题上“领头”的国家，已采取重大措施改善对华关系。两国高级官员近期相继访华。

据《环球邮报》报道，加拿大前驻华大使圣雅克表示，他认为莫里森访华“是为了寻求某种形式的和解，因为目前双方几乎没有交流”，这可能为加拿大外长若利访华铺平道路。

中国社会科学院加拿大研究中心副秘书长姚鹏周二对《环球时报》表示，加拿大政府正准备派一名副外长访华作为初步举措，根据若利外长最近发表的关于对华“务实外交”的言论，这似乎是一种临时、季节性和权宜之计。

然而，加拿大改善对华关系的努力的诚意仍然不足。姚鹏说，原因是中加之间的政治互信已被加方彻底破坏。

加拿大若想扭转中加关系面临的困难局面，改善经贸关系，就必须彻底抛弃冷战思维和“拉帮结派”的观念。

Report says Canadian FM plans to send deputy to China to improve strained relations, responding to public demand

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202404/1310722.shtml

By GT staff reportersPublished: Apr 17, 2024

Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly is dispatching her deputy David Morrison to China in a bid to help thaw chilled relations with China, AFP reported on Monday, citing a government source with knowledge of the trip, who said the federal government of Canada wants to "normalize bilateral ties with China" and Morrison's trip to China "is part of that." Experts told the Global Times on Tuesday there is a growing public demand in Canada for improving economic and political relations with China, especially after observing recent increased high-level interactions between China and the US, Australia and Germany.

As of press time on Tuesday, neither the Chinese side nor the Canadian side had released any relevant information about the trip.

Joly herself has not travelled to China since assuming the role of Canadian Foreign Minister in 2021, partly due to factors such as COVID-19 restriction measures and the cooling relations between China and Canada.

Multiple foreign media reports said that the unreasonable detention of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou on a US warrant in Vancouver in December 2018, and China's detention of two Canadians, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, on espionage charges, plunged relations into a deep freeze.

In 2023, Canada made wrongful remarks on issues related to China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Hong Kong and the Taiwan question, and its warships and military aircraft repeatedly followed the US in conducting provocative activities under the pretext of "freedom of navigation" along China's coast.

More recently, the Canadian side has repeatedly hyped up the so-called "Chinese intervention in Canadian elections" in 2019 and 2021, which China refuted multiple times, thus straining ties between the two countries.

According to the AFP report, despite that Joly has never visited China, Wang Yi, member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and Chinese Foreign Minister, met with Joly at the latter's request on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference this February. At that time, Joly spoke about the need to "pursue pragmatic diplomacy" with China.

According to The Globe and Mail, Joly has recently frequently spoken of the term "pursuing pragmatic diplomacy" when talking about China-Canada relations. The report also noted that one of Joly's political mentors is former Canadian prime minister Jean Chrétien, who during his tenure helped forge the "golden decade" of China-Canada relations.

According to AFP, pressure has been mounting in the Canadian business community for the two sides to repair relations, as news came that the Canadian deputy foreign minister would visit China.

Business in Vancouver reported in January that many Canadian companies are concerned that political tensions between China and Canada are stopping them from fully tapping into the world's second-largest economy.

The Canada China Business Council argues that Canadian industry is losing ground to its American, Australian and European competitors, who are taking on Canada's market share in China for goods such as beef and pet food.

According to The Globe and Mail and Global Television Network, due to the cooling of China-Canada relations in recent years, Canada's economic and trade interests have been seriously harmed. However, countries such as the US and Australia, which have consistently aligned with Canada, and even "led the way" on issues related to China, have taken significant steps to improve their relations with China. Senior officials from these two countries have recently visited China one after another.

According to The Globe and Mail, Guy Saint-Jacques, a former Canadian ambassador to China, said he believes Morrison's visit to China is "part of trying to find some form of accommodation because right now there [are] almost no exchanges," which could pave the way for a trip to China by the Canadian Foreign Minister Joly.

The Canadian government is preparing to send a deputy foreign minister to China as a preliminary step, which, based on recent statements by Minister Joly focusing on "pragmatic diplomacy" toward China, seems to be a temporary, seasonal, and expedient measure, Yao Peng, deputy secretary-general of the Canadian Studies Center of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

However, the sincerity of Canada's efforts to improve relations with China is still insufficient. The reason is that political mutual trust between China and Canada has been completely destroyed by the Canadian side, Yao said.

If Canada wants to reverse the difficulties in China-Canada relations and improve economic and trade ties, it must completely abandon the Cold War mentality and the notion of "clique formation," Yao noted, adding that Canada should adhere to the foresight of its older generation of politicians and fundamentally uphold the principle of "friendliness between China and Canada" to thoroughly reverse the years of difficulties in China-Canada relations.