‘An incredible opportunity’: G7 Summit a chance for Canadian government to build relationships

School of Public Policy Director, Martha Hall Findlay, speaks with Alberta Primetime host Michael Higgins about the upcoming G7 Summit in Kananaskis.

School of Public Policy Director Martha Hall Findlay speaks with Alberta Primetime host about the upcoming G7 Summit in Kananaskis.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Michael Higgins: From the war in Ukraine to the war in the Middle East, to the U.S. president waging a global trade war, and even questions over Canadian sovereignty, there is much weighing on the shoulders of the world leaders. So what kind of stage does that set for this summit?

Martha Hall Findlay: It certainly is an interesting one. I think a lot of people are watching very intently to see just what happens. How is Donald Trump going to behave? What are some of the discussions?

You have planned discussions but then you never know, especially in these volatile times, where some of the discussions will go. What’s really interesting about a G7 right now, and for Canada to be hosting, is there is no other opportunity like the G7 meetings to have really important straight talk among senior politicians from the key countries around the world.

I had the very good fortune of having a conversation with former Prime Minister Jean Chretien about the importance of the G7 and he said, unequivocally, it’s the ability of key people to sit around a table and not rely on speeches written by bureaucrats.

He said the ability to have look you in the eye straight conversations is irreplaceable, and it’s such an important time for Canada to be here and to be hosting. It’ll be very interesting, but it’s a excellent opportunity.

MH: So where does that leave Canada as host and expectations for how we fit as a nation into the bigger picture?

MHF: There’s always the scenery which you can smile at, but you know the finance ministers were here and they were all taking selfies with the mountains in the background. So in some ways, it’s lovely because it showcases just what a great place we have here, but more importantly, we have, in effect, a new government with a new prime minister who is clearly well regarded around the world.

It does set a different stage for Canada’s engagement here. It does give us the opportunity, especially in Calgary, to talk about the importance of global energy security. It is an opportunity for Canada to really be taken seriously on the global stage and that’s really important to us.

It’s particularly important to us as a relatively small, but very open, very trade dependent country, and for us to have that opportunity particularly with some of the challenges that are being presented by Donald Trump, to engage with other global leaders, to reinforce the importance of an open trading world order.

MH: How different a summit of leaders do you expect this to be compared to the one hosted 23 years ago?

MHF: There’s some parallels. The one in 2002 when Jean Chretien was the prime minister at the time, was right after September 11, so there were an awful lot of people around the world very much on edge. Global security was very much top of mind.

We, of course, have the war, the Russian invasion of Ukraine for the second time. A war right on Europe’s doorstep at the same time as greater questions about the United States’ role in potential conflict.

It’s unfortunate 25 years later we as a globe are still talking about some of these really serious peace and war issues. That will clearly be one of the aspects. The other thing that’s of interest for the G7 is that the G7 itself, as an organization, it came about 50 years ago largely because of the then world energy crisis.

We clearly have some energy security issues facing the world right now too. So there’s some interesting connections, both just simply because it’s the G7 but also to 25 years ago here in Canada.

MH: You mentioned Donald Trump a moment ago, we expect that he is at the table. How awkward might conversations be between nations as a consequence of the unpredictability the U.S. President brings to the conversation?

MHF: It is also very interesting to see the different heads of state that Prime Minister Carney has invited and who are coming. There will be some meetings where everyone’s around the table, there will be some meetings where not everyone is around the table, simply because it is the G7 so some are invited to some of the sessions.

Donald Trump has already made it very clear that he if he sees countries ganging up on him, to paraphrase, he won’t be happy about that. So there will be sensitivities, for sure, but there is huge benefit at having these world leaders in the same place.

There will be hallway conversations, there will be side conversations. It is an incredible opportunity for our prime minister to really establish Canada, and himself, as a key player in these discussions.

MH: In terms of nations getting together, finding solutions, what needs to result from this summit for it to be considered a success, especially from a Canadian standpoint?

MHF: The fact that we’re hosting it, the fact that our new prime minister is the host, is already a success for me. I see these moves as setting the stage for some success.

The real success is in really building those personal relationships. That will mean the ability to pick up the phone to engage in further conversations. You simply can’t replace the value of those in person meetings, getting to know people. We all know that how valuable that is.

That, in and of itself, for our prime minister and for the others, especially those new to the G7,is irreplaceable, frankly. At a time when geopolitics are interesting, to say the least, it is that much more valuable that these heads of state, these leaders, are able to develop those relationships for future reference, not just for these two days.