Dans l'actualité

'Massive risk': Chinese EVs are the first test for Canada’s new strategic partnership with China

National Post, April 17, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

Excerpt: Increased trade with Chinese companies will pose challenges to Canada’s new diplomatic relationship with China, said Vina Nadjibulla, vice president of research and strategy at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada.

“I think there are a number of concerns when it comes to this expansion of Chinese companies and their presence in Canadian market,” she said. “And human rights is one element of it, but economic security and national security concerns must also be considered.”

“In the last five years, the government has developed a number of tools to protect Canadian economic interests,” she said, citing the Investment Canada Act which has blocked Chinese companies from gaining access to strategic resources, but also research protection provisions...We need to make sure that we’re fully applying them, even as we are now trying to stabilize relations with China.”

Deputy FM Wu delivers speech in Montreal

Taiwan Today, April 15, 2026

Featuring: APF Canada's Taiwan-Quebec Workshop on April 8, 2026.

Excerpt: "Deputy Foreign Minister François Chih-chung Wu delivered a speech at the Center for Sustainable Development April 8 in Montreal, Canada, elaborating on the opportunities and challenges for the Taiwan-Quebec relationship.

Organized by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Montreal, Vancouver-based think tank Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, the University of Quebec and the University of Montreal, the event attracted over 100 attendees. The participants demonstrated their interest in Taiwan via questions on issues spanning Taiwan’s international participation, economic and trade exchanges, energy security, technological cooperation, and the Indo-Pacific geopolitical situation."

Middle East instability strengthens case for Canadian LNG exports

Canadian Affairs, April 14, 2026

Featuring: Barrett Bingley, Asia Regional Director, Asia Regional Office (Singapore), APF Canada

Excerpt: Barrett Bingley, Asia regional director at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, says the Iran war has served as a “wake-up call” for governments across Northeast Asia.

LNG shipments from Canada have the advantage of avoiding major maritime chokepoints such as the Strait of Hormuz, the Suez Canal and the Panama Canal.

“Canada’s West Coast goes straight to tidewater and then directly to the regasification plants in Taiwan, South Korea and Japan without going through any chokepoints,” Bingley said.

“That’s a huge advantage, and that should add a geopolitical premium to Canadian energy supplies."

Forum Highlights Indonesia-Canada Ties as Middle Powers

Jakarta Globe, April 11, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

Excerpt: Vina Nadjibulla, a Canadian think tank representative, believes there is a vast window of opportunity to strengthen Indonesia-Canada cooperation, not only due to rapidly changing global dynamics but also due to internal Canadian factors that encourage openness to new, more diverse, and strategic partners.

"Canada is currently reorienting its foreign policy amidst various global disruptions. Therefore, relations with Indonesia have a significant opportunity to improve, especially if both countries can build more institutionalized mechanisms and encourage concrete follow-up," she emphasized.

FPSA and Canadian Think Tanks Advance Dialogue on Middle Power Cooperation in the Global Order

Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia, Ottawa, Canada and Representative to ICAO, April 9, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

Excerpt: The Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Ottawa, in collaboration with the Foreign Policy Strategy Agency of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia (FPSA), convened a Roundtable Policy Dialogue in Ottawa on Thursday, 9 April 2026.

From the Canadian side, participants included a number of prominent think tank leaders and academics, namely Ms. Vina Nadjibulla of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, Mr. Christopher Coates of the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, Mr. Matthew Millar of the Journal of Geoeconomics, Mr. Gregory Goldhawk of the Canadian International Council, and Professor Elliot Tepper, Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Norman Patterson School of International Affairs, Carleton University.

“Canada is currently recalibrating its foreign policy orientation in the face of multiple global disruptions," Nadjibulla said. "As such, the relationship with Indonesia holds significant promise, particularly if both countries are able to develop more institutionalized mechanisms and ensure concrete follow-up."

Does a military upgrade mean a climate downgrade?

What on Earth with Laura Lynch (CBC Radio), April 2, 2026

Featuring: Hema Nadarajah, Program Manager, Southeast Asia, APF Canada

Excerpt: Hema says Canada’s increased spending on defence, totalling over C$63 billion, is a “much-needed change” to help support infrastructure and security in Canada’s Arctic, but warns Ottawa to consider climate resilience throughout these projects.

“The changing climate is fundamentally altering the Arctic’s role in Canada’s security. It’s made the region much more relevant in a way it simply wasn’t before," with warmer temperatures increasing resource availability and opening shipping corridors, like the Northwest Passage, "which could cut shipping distances from Western Europe to East Asia by about 8,000 kilometres in the far north.”

Despite increased co-operation between China and Russia, she argues that the most urgent threat to Canada’s Arctic is not “a Russian tanker rolling across the tundra,” but "climate change." She adds that a larger defence budget “might put more pressure on our efforts to cut emissions.”

The Hill Times news item — The Hill Times

The Top 50 People Influencing Canadian Foreign Policy: The Hill Times

The Hill Times, April 8, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

The Hill Times' annual list was compiled after speaking to nearly 20 insiders, including current and former senior government officials, past diplomats, and analysts. APF Canada's Vina Nadjibulla was featured in this year's list.

Excerpt: The government’s pivot to Asia has put Vina Nadjibulla in the spotlight. She is described as having a “good network” within GAC and among Indo-Pacific embassies in Ottawa.

The Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada’s vice-president for research and strategy is a frequent commentator in the media for all things Indo-Pacific at a time when Canada is re-examining its engagement with China and India. That will only continue with ongoing trade negotiations with India, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and the Philippines, among other players in the region.

The Take via Al Jazeera — The Take | Al Jazeera

How Asia Became Ground Zero for the Oil Crisis

The Take from Al Jazeera, April 6, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

Excerpt: "In the front line [of the Iran war] where the people most impacted are the poor, the same is happening in Asia, where obviously all countries are impacted, but the countries that are not as advanced as let's say Japan or China or Taiwan are impacted more. And then within those countries, the people who are already kind of struggling and living paycheque to paycheque are now being impacted the most.

“The reason is because of the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The strait, which is a narrow body of water, 20 per cent of the energy, of the oil and gas of the world, goes through that strait. But the majority goes to Asia. So that's why countries from Pakistan to Japan were impacted the most, that entire region. Because A, most of them are very dependent on imports of oil – they don't have a domestic supply. And B, most of those imports came through the Middle East for them. So they were the first ones to feel it. And for countries like Japan and China, where they have strategic reserves of oil, the impact was not as severe because the governments were able to step in and take immediate measures. For countries like Bangladesh and the Philippines and Pakistan and even India, the impact was more severe because the reserves are less. And then [their governments] began introducing austerity measures.”

'Focused on building on PM Carney's visit': Analyst on delegates wrapping up China trade mission

CTV News, April 4, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

Excerpt: “[Finance Minister Champagne's visit to China] was very much focused on building on Prime Minister Carney's January visit. Minister Champagne was able to launch the financial working group set up between the two countries and unlock opportunities for Chinese state-directed investment into Canada. And the visit also allowed Canadian financial institutions and banks to hopefully expand their services and offerings in the Chinese market.

“This trip was really about getting the political buy-in, because in the Chinese system, you need that. It's a communist state-controlled system where you need the political leadership to agree to channel big capital and investments into Canada. And that's what Canada really wants right now, investments into oil and gas, as well as the agricultural sector.”

Can Canada maintain its values while deepening trade ties with China?

CBC News - Power and Politics, March 31, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

Excerpt: Nadjibulla says PM Carney’s response to concerns over China’s forced labour practices raised in Parliament recently shows “how difficult it is to walk that balance between pragmatism and also defence of human rights, values, and principles” that are embodied in Canadian society.

“While we want to deepen economic engagement and we certainly see the logic of that… there are also serious issues, and forced labour is just one of them.”

Finding that balance between upholding Canadian “laws and values while at the same time not being displeasing to Beijing… is something that will continue to be an issue as [Canada] moves forward with this recalibration with China.”

Liberal MP Michael Ma apologizes following comments on forced labour in China

CTV News, March 28, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

Excerpt: “I believe that the messaging and the downplaying of serious human rights concerns in China sends the wrong signal and at the wrong time. It points to a bigger danger that our desire to stabilize and improve relations with China is being interpreted by some as the need to mute criticism or self-censor and remain silent on serious issues, issues the PRC views as sensitive, and I think that would be a mistake.

"A serious China policy has to be on a dual track, one which pursues engagement that benefits our interests... but another track that remains clear eyed about serious issues on human rights, on economic security, on national security. And we should not be self-censoring and sending a signal to Beijing that we are prepared to walk back on all our principles in the interest of stability in this relationship."

Insights from Mark Carney's Asia Visit: Canada, Germany, and Indo-Pacific partnerships

KAS Canada Unfiltered (podcast), March 26, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

Excerpt: “The Iran conflict is having massive global implications...and Canada certainly as an energy and agricultural superpower, this is a moment for us to really step up and get as much of our products to market as possible. If there was ever a moment for us to diversify trading relations and try to go global, this is it...that essentially, unfortunately, means still relying on U.S export infrastructure to ship more LNG and oil to the U.S., then through the Gulf of Mexico to Europe," and parts of the Middle East and Asia.

Nadjibulla adds that "if anything, the Iran conflict stresses the need to diversify supplies and to have as many options as possible."

Carney’s mega anti-Trump alliance starts quest to save world trade

POLITICO, March 25, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

Excerpt: “There is clearly growing recognition that if consensus-based reform at the WTO remains blocked, willing countries will need parallel mechanisms to move ahead on specific issues,” said Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada.

The EU and CPTPP are working to “build coalitions around areas where there is already substantial convergence,” she added. “This is not about replacing the WTO, but about creating a complementary platform for a large group of like-minded economies to move forward on digital trade, investment facilitation, and supply chains.”

The partnership points to a bigger strategic story, she continued, “the emergence of a wider middle-power trade coalition designed to preserve as much of the rules-based order as possible, while also creating new pathways to update it.”

Advancing Arctic Sovereignty Through Indo-Pacific Defence Partnerships

Policy Magazine, March 24, 2026

Featuring: Hema Nadarajah, Program Manager, Southeast Asia, APF Canada

Excerpt: "Protecting Canada’s sovereignty in the Arctic depends increasingly on secure access to supply chains, fabrication hubs, and software-control regimes beyond its borders.

The federal government’s recent Arctic investment—exceeding $40 billion across defence infrastructure, transportation, energy, and surveillance—signals a shift toward sustained northern capability. Yet this shift also highlights a structural reality: the platforms that underpin Arctic defence rely on globally concentrated production networks, particularly in the Indo-Pacific."

‘Stronger Philippines-Canada ties needed for critical minerals supply chain’

The Philippine Star, March 22, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

Excerpt: Vina Nadjibulla, APF Canada vice president for research, specifically identified critical minerals – which underpin high-tech industries and advanced defence systems – as a cornerstone of the two nations’ deepening partnership and said the two countries must leverage their complementary strengths to build a more resilient economic future in the region.

“This is the moment to deploy our critical minerals, both for our digital needs and our sustainability goals, as well as obviously defence industrial actions,” Nadjibulla said.

She also underscored the strategic necessity of “building supply chains that are democratic, that are not just dependent on China,” to be able to navigate an increasingly “divided and dangerous” global landscape.

Commentary: Middle power pragmatism underpins Canada’s outreach to India and China

CNA, March 20, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

Excerpt: In the backdrop of a changing world, Mr Carney’s trip to China was not simply about stabilizing relations, according to Ms. Vina Nadjibulla, vice-president of research and strategy at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada.

“It was about signalling, and beginning to implement, a more independent Canadian foreign policy in response to fundamental shifts in the global economic and security order – and a growing recognition that Canada can no longer rely on old assumptions about alliances, global rules, predictability, or insulation from geopolitical shock, including in its relationship with the United States,” she wrote.

Canada not choosing between Beijing, Taipei: analyst

Taipei Times, March 20, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

Excerpt: Nadjibulla highlighted the economic complementarity between Taiwan and Canada, saying that Taiwan can benefit from Canada's strengths in energy, resources and research, while Canada can tap Taiwan's manufacturing capabilities.

Diversifying energy supply sources could help Taiwan boost its resilience, particularly given geopolitical uncertainties, she said.

"With everything that's happening in the Middle East right now, you're also vulnerable because you're getting so much of your energy from a part of the world that's actually much more volatile," she added.

Critics urge Ottawa to help Inuit resist Chinese surveillance, economic dependence

The Canadian Press, March 19, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

Excerpt: Asia Pacific Foundation vice-president Vina Nadjibulla said she’s noticed that cabinet ministers have avoided calling out China as a threat actor ever since Prime Minister Mark Carney’s January visit to Beijing.

“We need to be careful not to move too far into self-censoring, in an attempt to not cause unhappiness on the part of Beijing,” she said. She noted that Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand was the only panellist at a Munich Security Conference discussion in February who did not name China as a threat in the Arctic.

“Our foreign minister exclusively focused her remarks on Russia — the word China didn’t enter into her discussions,” Nadjibulla said. “When our energy minister (Tim Hodgson) speaks of critical minerals, he speaks about the dominance of a country, or dominance of one player, without naming China, when it’s obvious that we’re speaking about China.”

Philippines eyes critical minerals accord with Canada

Business Inquirer (Philippines), March 17, 2026

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, APF Canada

Excerpt: “We hope that with Canada, we can also have a critical minerals agreement,” Rodolfo said at a forum on Philippines-Canada trade organized by Stratbase Institute and the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada.

...APF Canada Vice President Vina Nadjibulla said diversifying supply chains has become more urgent amid rising geopolitical risks.

“This is the moment to deploy our critical minerals, both for our digital needs and our sustainability goals, as well as obviously defense industrial actions,” Nadjibulla said at the same forum.

Hormuz woes testing Asia's energy security; Canada offers solution

ANC, March 17, 2026

Featuring: Barrett Bingley, Asia Regional Director (Singapore Office), APF Canada

Excerpt: "At the Canada-in-Asia Conference last month [energy security] was a massive topic... and that's really come to a head with the [Iran] conflict."

"Unfortunately, Canada is not in an immediate" position to offer a "solution to the concerns and possible crisis the Philippines" and other Asian economies are facing with global oil restrictions.

Bingley said he sees potential in a medium-term solution involving Canadian LNG exports to Philippines, avoiding supply chain chokepoints.

Dans l'actualité

Réactions médiatiques de la FAP Canada aux derniers enjeux et événements en Asie