Foreign Affairs and International Development

The House of Commons Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development met to study Canada’s Indo-Pacific strategy, hearing from Scott Simon, a professor at the University of Ottawa; Jonathan Berkshire Miller, a senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute; and Vina Nadjibulla, vice-president of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada.

Scott Simon argued that the geopolitical context has shifted since the strategy’s launch, citing China’s military exercises around Taiwan, incursions into Japanese waters, and sanctions against Japan. He recommended that Canada publicly support Japan against Chinese accusations, strengthen defence collaboration with Japan, continue Taiwan Strait transits and interparliamentary diplomacy, and sign a long-negotiated trade agreement with Taiwan. He also urged Canada to address China’s non-market policies and avoid becoming an economic enabler for China, warning that compliance with Chinese demands to treat Taiwan as a red line would diverge from Canada’s long-standing policy.

Jonathan Berkshire Miller said the strategy should be refreshed, not rewritten, to reflect the interconnection of threats across the Indo-Pacific, transatlantic, and Arctic regions, and to reject the separation of economic and security policy. He recommended formal mechanisms to ensure continuity across political cycles, focusing Canada’s security contributions on niche areas like maritime domain awareness and cyber-capabilities, and deepening economic diversification with security considerations in mind. He disagreed with the idea that Canada can engage economically without accounting for security risks, and cautioned against self-censoring engagement with Taiwan.

Vina Nadjibulla said the strategy has delivered progress but needs a phase two with fewer priorities, dedicated resources, and measurable outcomes, with economic resilience as its organizing logic. She recommended updating the China and Taiwan chapters, arguing that selective engagement with China must not become quiet accommodation and should be bounded by specific guardrails on issues like foreign interference and forced labour. She also urged Canada to treat energy, technology, and university partnerships as strategic assets, and to link the strategy to a broader foreign policy and national security framework, publishing an annual scorecard to measure outcomes.

During questions, Nadjibulla and Miller agreed that peace and security are prerequisites for economic engagement, with Miller noting that security is now a baseline for discussions in the region. Simon added that Canada should consider a formal alliance with Japan, the UK, Australia, and New Zealand. On the U.S.-China relationship, Nadjibulla said the recent summit framed a “constructive strategic stability” that Canada should not mistake for resolved structural issues, while Miller noted that U.S. actions like freedom of navigation operations show continued deterrence. On Chinese electric vehicles, Miller expressed concern about espionage risks and diplomatic costs with Japan, Simon raised human rights concerns about forced labour in supply chains, and Nadjibulla said the focus should be on broader implications for Canada’s industrial strategy. On foreign interference, Nadjibulla stressed the need to keep the issue a priority and implement recommendations from the public inquiry. On India, Nadjibulla described a fundamental reset in the relationship, with a comprehensive economic partnership agreement providing a framework, but noted Canada needs to build its competence in engaging with India. On forced labour, Nadjibulla said the strategy includes law enforcement and developmental components in Southeast Asia, but advised against bringing domestic legislation into the strategy itself. On the upcoming visit of China’s foreign minister, Miller advised against backtracking on support for like-minded democracies, Nadjibulla urged Canada to avoid falling into China’s rhetoric of complete alignment, and Simon said Canada should communicate ongoing concerns to the public. On diaspora and academic diplomacy, Nadjibulla highlighted the value of alumni networks and diaspora communities as assets for soft power and commercial ties, advocating a whole-of-nation approach. Simon framed Canada’s choice as supporting open societies and democratic values, not just a U.S.-China binary.