It is an image that just a year ago would have seemed unfathomable: the Canadian and Chinese leaders standing side by side, shaking hands and grinning.
Ties between the two countries cratered in 2018 when Canadian police arrested Chinese technology executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver on US fraud charges. Days later, Beijing locked up two Canadians, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, on spying charges that Canada slammed as bogus. (Kovrig and Spavor were released nearly three years later after the US dropped the extradition request for Meng).
The diplomatic tussle soured the relationship and engendered a deep mistrust between Ottawa and Beijing. But as President Donald Trump escalates his trade war with one of the US’s closest allies, Canada has looked to a longtime foe for some common ground.
The tide began turning early last month, when Canada’s top diplomat Anita Anand visited Beijing to meet with her counterpart Wang Yi. Then, Prime Minister Mark Carney and leader Xi Jinping met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation summit in South Korea – the first time leaders of the two countries had met in eight years.
That 40-minute meeting marked a “turning point” for Canada and China as they pledged to improve ties and collaborate on trade, according to a Canadian statement following the meeting, which also said Carney planned to visit Xi in China.
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