Trudeau links global campaign on arbitrary detention declaration to China
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada spearheaded an international declaration denouncing state-sponsored arbitrary detentions because of China's decision to imprison Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor.
Trudeau made the connection for the first time Friday during a federal election campaign appearance in Windsor, Ont.
In February, when the federal government announced that it had created a coalition of dozens of countries denouncing the practice, it played down any connection that it was specifically targeting China, which has been angered by the declaration, nonetheless.
Foreign Affairs Minister Marc Garneau said at the time the declaration was "country agnostic" and was meant to be a broad denunciation of a coercive practices taking place in numerous countries, including Russia, Iran, and North Korea.
But on Friday, when asked about Canada's exclusion from a new American-Australian-British alliance on intelligence sharing in the Indo-Pacific region, Trudeau touted a number of other Canadian geopolitical alliances, including its historic role in NATO and its relatively new effort on calling out state-sponsored arbitrary detention.
"We continue to be there as a strong proponent for multilateralism, including on moving forward on things like the international agreement on arbitrary detentions that obviously stems from the arbitrary detention of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, but that concerns all countries around the world," Trudeau said.
While the government has routinely branded Kovrig and Spavor's arrests by China as arbitrary, and called for their release, it went to great lengths not to portray the new arbitrary-detention initiative as something that was aimed directly at China.
China has accused the two men of being spies, a claim rejected by Canada and its allies. The arrests are widely viewed as retaliation for the RCMP's December 2018 arrest of Chinese high-tech executive Meng Wanzhou on an American extradition request.
The new declaration was born out of a year of behind-the-scenes international diplomacy in 2020 and was led by Garneau's predecessor as foreign affairs minister, Francois-Philippe Champagne. More than 60 countries have since signed on to the new pact, which doesn't have any mechanism to force offending countries to adhere to it.
China has sharply criticized all attempts by Canada to build an international coalition to press it to release Kovrig and Spavor. And it has dismissed the arbitrary-detention declaration as essentially toothless and lacking the support of the majority of countries.
The unexpected new alliance announced earlier this week between the U.S., the U.K. and Australia, known as AUKUS, raised questions internationally, and in Canada and the U.S.
It became an issue on the federal election campaign trail where Conservative Leader Erin O'Toole and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh criticized Trudeau for Canada's absence from the new pact.
Trudeau shrugged off the criticism, saying Canada continues to be a member of the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing alliance that includes the U.S., Britain, Australia and New Zealand.
He also said the new AUKUS alliance was about bolstering Australia's navy against Chinese ambitions in the region by giving access to American nuclear submarine technology.
"Canada wasn't in the market for nuclear submarines, and therefore, this particular deal didn't involve us," Trudeau said Friday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2021.
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
LIVE Evacuation order issued for some Fort McMurray neighbourhoods as wildfire nears
Four Fort McMurray neighbourhoods were ordered to evacuate as a wildfire gets closer to the city.
Maximum payout for LifeLabs class-action drops from $150 estimate to $7.86
Canadian LifeLabs customers who filed an application for a class-action settlement began receiving their payments this week, though at a much lower amount than initially expected.
Alice Munro, Nobel literature winner revered as short story master, dead at 92
Nobel laureate Alice Munro, the Canadian literary giant who became one of the world's most esteemed contemporary authors and one of history's most honoured short story writers, has died at age 92.
BREAKING 'A remarkable time': After 8 years at Toronto Public Health, Dr. Eileen de Villa announces resignation
The doctor who led Toronto through the COVID-19 pandemic as the city’s top public health official is stepping down.
Latest updates on air quality alerts, and when the smoke may reach Ontario and Quebec
Wildfires have led Environment Canada to issue air quality advisories for parts of B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories, as forecasters warn the smoke could drift farther east.
BREAKING Sask. man faces 60 charges in child exploitation investigation, with crimes dating back to 2005
Saskatchewan RCMP have revealed that a historic sexual assault investigation has led to the discovery of alleged crimes against children dating back to 2005.
American sought after 'So I raped you' Facebook message detained in France on 2021 warrant
An American accused of sexually assaulting a Pennsylvania college student in 2013 and later sending her a Facebook message that said, 'So I raped you,' has been detained in France after a three-year search.
Are these Canada's best restaurants? Annual top 100 list revealed
The annual list of Canada's top restaurants in the country was just released and here are the places that made the 2024 cut.
1 killed, 3 injured in head-on crash on Hwy. 417 in Ottawa
Ontario Provincial Police are responding to a fatal collision involving two vehicles on Highway 417 in Ottawa's west end on Tuesday morning.
Local Spotlight
'We're on standby': Team ready to help entangled right whale in Gulf of St. Lawrence
A team is ready to help an entangled North Atlantic right whale in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
Thieves caught on camera stealing pet chicken from North Vancouver backyard
A $200 reward is being offered by a North Vancouver family for the safe return of their beloved chicken, Snowflake.
Adopted daughter in the Netherlands reunited with sister in Montreal and mother in Colombia, 40 years later
Two daughters and a mother were reunited online 40 years later thanks to a DNA kit and a Zoom connection despite living on three separate continents and speaking different languages.
'Reimagining Mother's Day': Toronto woman creates Motherless Day event after losing mom
Mother's Day can be a difficult occasion for those who have lost or are estranged from their mom.
Chris Hadfield inspires youth musical in Sudbury
YES Theatre Young Company opened its acclaimed kids’ show, One Small Step, at Sudbury Theatre Centre on Saturday.
Ottawa pizzeria places among top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world at international competition
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
From outer space? Sask. farmers baffled after discovering strange wreckage in field
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.
Wilfrid Laurier football player drafted despite only playing 27 games in his entire life
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
Federal government bans watercraft from Manitoba lake popular with tourists
The threat of zebra mussels has prompted the federal government to temporarily ban watercraft from a Manitoba lake popular with tourists.