Canada taking cautious approach to China

Ambassador to Beijing says country presents opportunities, but also challenges, for businesses

- DYLAN ROBERTSON

Canada’s ambassador to China says Ottawa’s “complex” relationship with Beijing means some facets of the relationship are speeding along while others are in reverse.

“The analogy I constantly use while advising Canadian companies looking to do business in China is that of the yellow light,” Jennifer May said in a French-language speech this week.

May told the Montreal Council on Foreign Relations that Canada no longer faces the green light of “business as usual” with China, but it’s also past what she called the redlight scenario of 2018, when China detained Canadian citizens Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor.

Beijing jailed the pair for 1,019 days following the arrest and detention of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver at the request of the United States. Since then, Canadians continue to say in surveys they worry about being arbitrarily arrested in China.