OTTAWA — Conservative and Bloc Québécois MPs are calling on the Liberals to observe by means of on a commerce co-operation framework with Taiwan after the territory’s envoy to Canada mentioned Ottawa halted the method all of the sudden.
A senior Canadian diplomat mentioned final week it’s as much as cupboard to determine tips on how to transfer ahead on the settlement, which he advised is sort of prepared for a signature.
“The federal government is contemplating the timing and the character of transferring ahead on it,” Weldon Epp, the assistant deputy minister at World Affairs Canada who oversees diplomacy within the Indo-Pacific, instructed the Home international affairs committee on Thursday.
“I totally anticipate there will likely be choices taken earlier than too lengthy on transferring ahead.”
He was talking after Taiwan’s de facto ambassador Harry Tseng instructed Radio-Canada in a February report that the framework had been able to be signed since April of final yr.
Tseng, head of Taipei’s Financial and Cultural Workplace in Canada, declined an interview request final week.
He instructed Radio-Canada negotiating groups had initialled each web page of the doc. He mentioned he suspected the Canadian authorities was stalling in an effort to enhance relations with mainland China at Taiwan’s expense.
Prime Minister Mark Carney mentioned on the time Canada may conduct commerce with each jurisdictions.
“We’ve got commerce relations with Taiwan. However we’re specializing in strengthening our commerce relations with China,” the prime minister mentioned in French on Feb. 4.
Taiwan, a de facto autonomous island state, is regarded by the Chinese language Communist Social gathering as a rogue province that should be reunited with mainland China.
Underneath Canada’s long-standing One China coverage, Ottawa regards Beijing as China’s sole consultant however nonetheless collaborates with Taiwan.
Finally week’s committee assembly, Bloc MP Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe accused the federal government of dragging its ft.
“It’s an settlement that doesn’t convey any threat,” he mentioned in French. “The one legitimate motive proper now for why we’re not signing the settlement is just because we don’t need to upset Beijing.”
Conservative international affairs critic Michael Chong mentioned the Tories need Ottawa to maneuver “expeditiously” on the deal.
“We’re very supportive of the association,” he instructed the committee.
The Home commerce committee has individually requested the federal government to “specify the anticipated timelines for the ratification of this settlement” and has requested Worldwide Commerce Minister Maninder Sidhu to testify on the matter.
A spokesperson for Sidhu’s workplace mentioned work on the deal is “extremely superior and is now into consideration by the minister” however didn’t supply a timeline for concluding the settlement.
“Informing the minister’s evaluation would be the full spectrum of discussions Canadian officers are having with their Taiwanese interlocutors on a variety of points pertaining to the worldwide commerce atmosphere,” wrote spokesman Mujtaba Hussain.
Epp mentioned the framework isn’t a treaty — which must be tabled in Parliament — however merely an settlement that builds on present pacts, such because the Canada-Taiwan international funding safety settlement.
He mentioned the framework affords “an vital alternative for us to extend entry for sure elements of our economic system.”
Darren Smith, the manager director of Indo-Pacific commerce coverage at World Affairs, helped to barter the settlement. He instructed the committee the doc is supposed to set the stage for extra particular agreements on issues just like the inexperienced economic system, synthetic intelligence and provide chains.
“It mainly units out course of, structure, contact factors, these sorts of components,” he mentioned.
Final October, Overseas Affairs Minister Anita Anand affirmed the One China coverage when requested about Taiwan in an interview.
“We’ll all the time put the wants of Canadians first and we’ll proceed our engagement with Taiwan,” she mentioned.
In a Jan. 21 interview, Chinese language Ambassador to Canada Wang Di referred to as on Canada to proceed formally recognizing Beijing as the only authorities of China whereas it engages with Taiwan.
“We don’t oppose unofficial actions — unofficial financial and people-to-people exchanges — however what we oppose is utilizing financial and people-to-people trade as a pretext to interact in official actions,” Wang mentioned by means of his interpreter.
Epp mentioned World Affairs is following by means of on Anand’s request for an replace to the Indo-Pacific technique that Ottawa launched in 2022 — earlier than Carney took to workplace and shifted his authorities’s strategy to China and India.
“I received’t presume as to the format of an replace, whether or not it is going to be a doc of speech or another type. I’ll go away it to the minister,” he mentioned.
This report by The Canadian Press was first printed April 20, 2026.
Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press