foreign affairs

Saturday April 8, 2023

April 8, 2023

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday April 8, 2023

Demolition by Neglect

The state of 24 Sussex Drive, the official residence of the Canadian prime minister, is a fitting metaphor for Canada’s declining international reputation. The building has been unoccupied since 2015 due to its severe state of disrepair, just as Canada’s influence and standing on the global stage has been steadily eroding in recent years.

News: ‘An embarrassment to the nation’: Former PM Chretien on state of 24 Sussex Drive

May 8, 2008

Canada’s traditional allies, such as the United States and the United Kingdom, have been preoccupied with their own domestic issues, leaving Canada to fend for itself. Its once-sterling reputation on the world stage has taken a hit in recent years, with the country being accused of being a laggard on climate change, Indigenous reconciliation, and global security. Furthermore, Canada has been slow to respond to China’s human rights abuses and has been hesitant to take a more assertive stance on the world stage, unlike France, which has been pushing for a more assertive European Union. 

February 6, 2018

France’s ambassador to Canada, Michel Miraillet, recently highlighted Canada’s weak military engagement and urged the country to choose between broadening its links with Europe or tying itself entirely to the United States. Miraillet argued that the recent invasion of Ukraine by Russia was the culmination of a decade of Moscow and Beijing working to weaken democracies.

News: French envoy: Canada should link with Europe, surpass ‘weak’ military engagement

Miraillet’s warning that all elected leaders are subject to short-term mandates while autocrats remain in power, and his suggestion that Canada needs to demonstrate a commitment to global security, echoes concerns raised by other countries about Canada’s declining influence.

January 12, 2022

As the world organizes itself along new axes of power, with the China-Russia pact on one side and democracies on the other, Canada cannot continue to align itself only with American interests. The democratic world needs to act together and have close friends to navigate the transition to a more multipolar logic. Canada must deepen its partnership with countries such as France to strengthen its position on the world stage.

The dilapidated state of 24 Sussex Drive is a physical representation of Canada’s current state of disrepair. It is time for Canada to invest in itself, to strengthen its military and its commitment to global security, and to broaden its links with Europe. If Canada fails to act, it risks being left behind in a world where autocrats are gaining power and democracies are losing ground. (AI)

From sketch to finish, see the current way Graeme completes an editorial cartoon using an iPencil, the Procreate app, and a couple of cheats on an iPad Pro. If you’re creative, give editorial cartooning a try.

Friday February 12, 2021

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday February 12, 2021

Diplomatic Channels: Iran and China

The Canadian government and security agencies are reviewing an audio recording in which a man — identified by sources as Iran’s foreign affairs minister — discusses the possibility that the destruction of Flight PS752 was an intentional act, CBC News has learned.

December 18, 2020

The individual, identified by sources as Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammad Javad Zarif, is heard saying on the recording that there are a “thousand possibilities” to explain the downing of the jet, including a deliberate attack involving two or three “infiltrators” — a scenario he said was “not at all unlikely.”

He is also heard saying the truth will never be revealed by the highest levels of Iran’s government and military.

“There are reasons that they will never be revealed,” he says in Farsi. “They won’t tell us, nor anyone else, because if they do it will open some doors into the defence systems of the country that will not be in the interest of the nation to publicly say.”

On Jan. 8, 2020, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps shot down Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 in the skies over Tehran with two surface-to-air missiles, killing all 176 people aboard, including 138 people with ties to Canada.

CBC News has listened to the recording of the private conversation, which took place in the months immediately following the destruction of Flight PS752. CBC had three people translate the recording from Farsi to English to capture nuances in the language. (CBC) 

December 8, 2020

Meanwhile, Canadian businessman Michael Spavor called his country’s Beijing embassy from an airport in China’s northeast. He was being questioned by authorities after being blocked from boarding a flight out of China.

Concern at the embassy over the call shifted to alarm when officials learned another Canadian had been apprehended in Beijing that day, on Dec. 10, 2018, according to people familiar with the matter. This time, it was former diplomat Michael Kovrig.

Since then, the two men have been thrust to the center of a high-stakes standoff between Canada, the U.S. and China, where they have been detained and accused of espionage. Hope had surged recently among family members and supporters that the men might be released if separate talks to resolve criminal charges against Meng Wanzhou, an executive at China’s Huawei Technologies Co., bore fruit. Canada has accused China of detaining the two men in retaliation for Ms. Meng’s arrest on a U.S. extradition request. (Wall Street Journal) 

 

Saturday February 8, 2020

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday February 8, 2020

As Trudeau campaigns in Africa for UN Security Council seat, Norwegian PM is steps behind

Nearly everywhere Justin Trudeau goes in Addis Ababa, it seems Norway’s prime minister isn’t far behind.

September 21, 2016

On Saturday, Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg arrived to an African Union meeting on gender equality just minutes after Trudeau did. Then, she followed in Trudeau’s footsteps, strolling through Unity Park with the Ethiopian prime minister. And as Trudeau was leaving Jubilee Palace from his meeting with the Ethiopian president, Solberg’s staffers were in the building preparing for her imminent arrival.

It’s no coincidence. The two leaders are both in Africa to win support from world leaders for a UN Security Council seat they both want to win. And Norway’s prime minister is suggesting that when it comes to that campaign, it may be Canada who is trailing behind.

“I think one of the differences, of course, is we have been on the steady same path for a very long time, so [African leaders] know us,” Solberg told Canadian reporters.

Take, for example, the African Union meeting. Trudeau made history on this trip by being the first Canadian prime minister to attend an African Union session. But Solberg was also here last year.

January 13, 2018

The African Union is a rich source of potential votes for any country looking to win a Security Council seat. It has 54 voting members at the United Nations, roughly a quarter of the total votes.

Speaking to Canadian reporters, the Norwegian leader said she didn’t want to emphasize competition between the two countries, noting they take the same approach to many issues. But she suggested Norway was perhaps more deeply engaged.

“Canada is a bigger economy, a larger country, of course, but on the other hand we are using more in development aid. We have used more support for the international policies as part of our GDP.”

In 2018, Norway spent nearly one per cent of its gross national income on international assistance. For Canada, the figure was 0.28 per cent, according to OECD figures.

October 13, 2010

Norway, Ireland and Canada are all gunning for one of the two limited-term UN Security Council seats that open up next year.

Ireland too, has been plotting a course of engagement with Africa for years. It launched its “Africa Strategy” in 2011.

While all countries see the seat as something of a prize that would allow their countries to play an influential role in world affairs, Solberg said the seat is also something of a burden.

“It’s an obligation that you have as supporters of multi-lateralism, as a supporter of rule of law. “

“You have to take the burden of sitting on the Security Council, because it’s also a burden. You have to take a stand on some policy decisions that as a non-member you don’t have to do.” (CBC) 

 

Wednesday June 7, 2017

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday June 7, 2017

Canada faces new world order in the face of dramatic change, says Chrystia Freeland

Canada is facing a new world order threatened by climate change, Daesh extremists, Russian aggression and the reality that many Americans want to “shrug off the burden of world leadership,” Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said Tuesday.

November 12, 2016

In what was billed as a major speech on Canada’s foreign policy priorities, Freeland sketched out the challenges the country faces today and the role it aspires to play.

She acknowledged the dramatic changes unfolding in Washington under U.S. President Donald Trump, who has pulled out of a global climate change pact, assailed NATO alliance for not pulling its fair share and talked up protectionist trade barriers.

While Freeland called the United States the “indispensable nation” in the postwar world order, those times may be coming to an end.

In laying out Canada’s foreign policy priorities, Freeland said that Ottawa will “robustly” support the rules-based international order and its institutions.

February 10, 2017

Those include G7, the G20, APEC, the Commonwealth and La Francophonie, NATO and the UN, she said.

In those forums, Canada will promote Canadian values that include feminism, and the promotion of the rights of women and girls, Freeland said.

Freeland also pledged that the Liberal government will boost investments in the military “to not only redress years of neglect and underfunding, but also to place the Canadian Armed Forces on a new footing—with the equipment, training, resources and consistent, predictable financing.”

October 20, 2016

The third pillar of Canada’s foreign policy will be trade, starting with the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement and renewed efforts to diversify trade worldwide,” she said.

Freeland highlighted Canada’s past roles on the world stage, in diplomatic circles and battlefields, from Europe to Korea to Afghanistan.

But the global order is changing in unprecedented ways, she said, with the emergence of the global south and Asia, notably China. That brings the need to integrate these countries into the world’s economic and political system “in a way that is additive, that preserves the best of the old order that preceded their rise, and that addresses the existential threat of climate change,” she said. (Source: Toronto Star)

 

Wednesday February 4, 2015

Wednesday February 4, 2015By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday February 4, 2015

John Baird resigns in emotional House of Commons speech

Tuesday February 3, 2015John Baird, a veteran of Queen’s Park politics and one of the shining lights of Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government, has confirmed he is leaving public life.

Baird, 45, whose resignation caught Parliament Hill almost totally off guard, delivered the surprise announcement in the Commons on Tuesday morning. He is stepping down as foreign affairs minister and leaving politics, the Ottawa member of Parliament said.

“The time has come to start a new chapter in my life,” Baird said in an emotional speech to fellow MPs. He did not explain what he will be doing next, though it is expected he will take a job in the private sector.

Tearing up, Baird said, “I will miss this place very much.”

He praised the economic and diplomatic efforts of the Harper government, saying “the world continues to see the best that Canada has to offer.”

Baird said he informed Harper last night of his intention to leave Parliament Hill. Baird received a standing ovation from MPs and after his speech, members lined up and wished him well one by one, with handshakes and hugs on the floor of the Commons.

“It is with great regret and affection that I today accepted the resignation of one of the finest ministers that I have had the privilege of working with, John Baird,” Harper said in a statement .

“John has always been willing to do a lot of heavy lifting in my various cabinets and has assumed daunting new responsibilities with unsurpassed energy, commitment and professionalism, never losing sight of the fact that he was serving the Canadian people,” Harper said.

But the unexpected resignation of one of Harper’s strongest performers was a blow to the Conservatives, who face the prospect of an election later this year. Without Baird, the party will have to refurbish its political operation in the Ottawa area. (Source: Toronto Star)

 

Also published at Yahoo News Canada, iPolitics and the Regina Leader Post