Diplomacy should rise above domestic politics

• Source: Global Times
• [02:15 December 02 2009]
• Comments

To many, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper's trip to China this week is a novelty. He has waited nearly four years after assuming office in 2006 to visit the world's largest emerging economy. No wonder a Canadian scholar hailed the visit by saying, "The Canadian beaver has sprouted wings!"

But Harper's visit should come as no surprise at all. As the first Canadian prime minister from the Conservative Party to lead a minority government, Harper has stuck to a conservative agenda at home and abroad.

By playing up China's human rights issue, keeping away from the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics, and meeting with Dalai Lama, Harper has long turned a cold shoulder to China. He seems to be bent on appeasing his electoral base, particularly in the western parts of Canada.

Harper's visit to China, and his softened tone at present, is no less expedient. Given the shrinking US economic condition in the wake of the global financial crisis, Canada is in dire need of other options to revive its own economy. And as the host of the G8 and G20 summits and the Winter Olympics in 2010, Canada cannot afford to lose the support of the Asian giant. To Harper, it is politically wise to visit China now, rather than at any time earlier.

While politicians cannot be blamed for their short-term, realistic approach in courting the electorate, their policies should not be dictated always by domestic politics alone. A far-sighted political leader must realize the crucial importance of facing up to China's rise as an important player on the world stage.

The ground lost by Canada in the last four years can be regained by the political leadership taking a strategic view of Sino-Canadian relationship, instead of being limited by what appears expedient.