The announcement on January 9, 2022, that Canada and Taiwan have agreed to launch exploratory discussions toward conclusion of a Foreign Investment Protection Agreement (FIPA) has been a long time coming–and is very timely. It may constitute a down-payment on an Indo-Pacific Strategy that is reportedly under preparation in Ottawa. Discussion of a possible FIPA […]

China surprised many in the trade policy world last September by formally applying for membership in the 11 country “Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership” (CPTPP), the trade agreement that rose like a phoenix from the ashes of the 12 country Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). There is no guarantee that the current members will agree to negotiate […]

China’s application on September 16 to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), the eleven state plurilateral trade agreement that was signed in 2018 after the United States withdrew from its predecessor, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, is a clever political and strategic move on China’s part. It also raises the question as to whether China […]

After months of deliberation and high-level pressure from the US, Britain has finally reached a decision on whether or not to allow Chinese technology supplier Huawei to participate in the rollout of 5G networks in the UK. In an announcement made on January 28, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that Huawei would be allowed limited […]

Given the ongoing difficult situation that Canada finds itself in our relations with China as a result of the arrest in Vancouver last December of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou, and China’s subsequent retaliation by detaining two Canadians, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, and blocking or impeding the entry into China of several key Canadian exports, […]