Voyageur 31
News for residents of the “11th province”: Canadians abroad.
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Kovrig to Carney: Your China Deal Could Cost Canada Its Auto Industry
Michael Kovrig - the former diplomat who spent nearly three years in a Chinese detention cell after Beijing grabbed him as a political hostage - has some pointed words about PM Mark Carney’s new trade deal with China. They’re not encouraging.
In an interview with the National Post, Kovrig lays out why he thinks the canola-for-EVs bargain is lopsided. Canada’s concession (market access) is immediate and bankable. The upside (Chinese automakers building factories in Canada) is speculative. “Any deal the CCP agrees to, it presumably considers advantageous,” he says. The handful of examples from other countries haven’t been encouraging - what you tend to get are assembly plants that bolt together components made in China, with limited jobs and ~zero technology transfer.
The bigger worry is that Chinese EVs get a toehold in Canada, consumer demand for their quality-at-bargain-prices could pressure the quotas and crush domestic automakers before they adapt. “I think there’s a very real risk that Canada loses its auto industry if this is not managed very carefully,” Kovrig warns. He might know a thing or two about what happens when you underestimate Beijing.
Read more: National Post
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Canada’s First F-35 Is Almost Ready. Will Carney Buy the Rest?
There’s an awkward ceremony happening in Texas today. Canada’s top air force commander is at Lockheed Martin’s factory in Fort Worth to sign the fuselage of the country’s first F-35 fighter jet - a notable moment in a $27-billion program that the government won’t fully commit to.
Canada has a contract for 16 F-35s. The original plan was 88. Carney’s government started a review after Trump’s inauguration and still hasn’t said what is going to happen with the remaining 72. The timing is delicious - signing for American-made jets while Trump threatens to ground Canadian-built aircraft (Voyageur 30) and put 100% tariffs on everything we export.
The alternatives include Sweden’s Saab, which is running a full-court press, pitching its Gripen fighter as a way to diversify away from U.S. defence dependence. The Swedish king visited Canada to help jawbone the sale. Carney’s Davos speech about Canadian sovereignty can only mean something if it’s backed by actual buying decisions.
The Conservatives want all 88 F-35s. The defence establishment wants all 88 F-35s. The air force is already training pilots for them. But buying American fighter jets right now might send a specific message that Carney would prefer not to deliver.
Read more: CBC News