Let’s free ourselves of the U.S. and forge closer ties with China
讓我們擺脫美國，與中國建立更緊密的關係。

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Julian Karaguesian is an economic and policy expert and former special adviser to the Department of Finance Canada and a visiting lecturer in the department of economics at McGill University.
Julian Karaguesian 是一位經濟與政策專家，曾任加拿大財政部特別顧問，現為麥基爾大學（McGill University）經濟系客座講師。

Robin Shaban is a partner at 2R Strategy and a fellow of the Public Policy Forum.
Robin Shaban 是 2R Strategy 的合夥人，也是公共政策論壇（Public Policy Forum）的研究員。

Canada’s “deal” with the U.S. to drop the digital services tax, which benefits U.S. tech giants such as Meta Platforms Inc. and Netflix Inc. at the expense of Canadian fiscal sovereignty, and the Trump administration’s latest threat of a 35-per-cent tariff on Canadian goods perfectly encapsulate our current predicament: Washington no longer views Canada as an ally, but rather as a subordinate from which to extract concessions. It’s a stark reminder that trade diversification is no longer optional – it’s an urgent national imperative.
加拿大與美國達成協議， 放棄徵收數位服務稅 ，此舉犧牲了加拿大的財政主權，卻讓 Meta Platforms Inc. 和 Netflix Inc. 等美國科技巨頭得利；而川普政府最近威脅要對加拿大商品課徵 35% 的關稅，這兩件事完美地體現了我們當前的困境：華盛頓不再將加拿大視為盟友，而是把它當成一個可以榨取利益的附庸。這嚴酷地提醒我們，貿易多元化不再是個選項，而是迫在眉睫的國家要務。

The rub is that our long-standing subordination to the U.S. is also holding us back from partnering with China, one of the world’s most important economies. To achieve economic sovereignty, Canada must break free from the made-in-Washington narrative that China is an unreliable trading partner bent on world domination. Instead, Canada must forge its own relationship with China – a relationship anchored in Canadian, not U.S., interests.
問題在於，我們長期以來對美國的附庸地位，也阻礙了我們與中國這個全球最重要的經濟體之一建立夥伴關係。為了實現經濟主權，加拿大必須擺脫華盛頓製造的論述——即中國是個不可靠的貿易夥伴，一心想稱霸世界。相反地，加拿大必須與中國建立自己的關係，一個以加拿大而非美國利益為核心的關係。

As the largest economy in the world on a purchasing power parity basis, China is set to be a core driver of future global economic growth. It also now accounts for a third of the world’s manufacturing output, more than all the G7 countries plus South Korea and Mexico combined. And not just low-cost manufacturing, but rather advanced production and world-beating technology. China leads in 37 of 44 critical technologies, from AI to green energy.
以購買力平價計算，中國已是全球最大經濟體 ，並將成為未來全球經濟增長的核心驅動力 。如今，中國的製造業產值佔全球三分之一，超過所有七大工業國（G7）加上南韓和墨西哥的總和。而且，這不僅僅是低成本製造，而是先進的生產技術和世界頂尖的科技。從人工智慧到綠色能源，中國在 44 項關鍵技術中領先了 37 項。

Analysis: Trump tariff threat piles pressure on Canada to expand trade with Asia
分析：川普的關稅威脅，為加拿大拓展亞洲貿易增添壓力

If Ottawa is serious about building a strong, independent economy, we must build a more reliable political relationship with China that supports access to its growing markets and tech hubs. With Canada in the throes of a productivity crisis, Canadian businesses need to be adopting and implementing leading technologies from around the world, including from China. Yet our federal government remains trapped in strategic paralysis, clinging to an Atlanticist-G7 world view while our largest trading partner and “closest ally” treats us with contempt.
如果渥太華當局真想建立一個強大、獨立的經濟體，我們就必須與中國建立更可靠的政治關係，以利我們進入其不斷增長的市場和科技中心。在加拿大深陷生產力危機之際，加國企業需要採用並實施來自世界各地的領先技術，其中也包括中國。然而，我們的聯邦政府卻仍困於戰略癱瘓，固守著大西洋主義與 G7 的世界觀，而我們最大的貿易夥伴和「最親密的盟友」卻對我們不屑一顧。

Ottawa’s acquiescence to Washington when it comes to Chinese technology creates self-inflicted economic wounds that are only getting worse. From the Huawei 5G ban to the Meng Wanzhou extradition case, Ottawa’s compliance with U.S. demands has alienated Canada from China and brought retaliatory measures in diplomacy and trade. The 100-per-cent tariffs that Ottawa imposed on Chinese electric vehicles on Oct. 1, 2024 – mirroring the Biden administration’s tariff and announced later the same day – eventually triggered retaliation against Canadian canola and pork, costing (mostly) Western farmers nearly $1-billion annually.
在中國科技議題上，渥太華對華盛頓的默許，造成了自殘式的經濟傷害，而且情況每況愈下。從華為 5G 禁令到孟晚舟引渡案 ，渥太華對美國要求的順從，已使加拿大與中國疏遠，並招致了外交和貿易上的報復措施。渥太華於 2024 年 10 月 1 日對中國電動車徵收 100% 的關稅 ——此舉呼應了拜登政府的關稅政策，並在同一天稍晚宣布——最終引發了對加拿大油菜籽和豬肉的報復，導致（主要位於西部的）農民每年損失近 10 億加元。

The irony? While Canada enforces Washington’s decoupling-from-China agenda, the U.S. quietly re-establishes its own commercial ties with China. Even as Washington pressures allies to shun Beijing, it is finalizing a bilateral agreement with China. Canada and other “allies” are enforcing rules that the rule-maker is ignoring.
諷刺的是，正當加拿大執行華盛頓的「與中國脫鉤」議程時，美國卻悄悄地與中國重建自身的商業關係。即便華盛頓施壓盟友疏遠北京，自己卻正在與中國敲定一項雙邊協議 。加拿大和其他「盟友」正在執行的，是規則制定者自己都置之不理的規則。

On top of that, our government officials alienate China (and India) with lectures on values and the absence of like-mindedness, which restricts both sides’ political ability and willingness to expand economic relations. Yes, Canada’s pluralistic system differs greatly from China’s single-party system. But Canada trades with other countries with significantly different political systems.
除此之外，我們的政府官員還用價值觀和缺乏共同理念等說教來疏遠中國（和印度），這限制了雙方在政治上拓展經濟關係的能力和意願。沒錯，加拿大的多元體制與中國的一黨專政大相逕庭。但加拿大也與其他政治體制截然不同的國家進行貿易。

Opinion: For all the importance of G7, Canada’s fortunes truly lie with China and India
評論：儘管 G7 至關重要，但加拿大的命運實則繫於中國與印度

Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party has been in power almost continuously since 1955, and yet no one questions our economic relationship with Japan because of “different values.” Our Minister of AI is seeking investment from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to expand our AI infrastructure. And while the U.S. has a pluralistic political system similar to ours, its democratic institutions have eroded significantly. Yet we generally do not question our bilateral relationship with the U.S. on this basis.
日本執政的自由民主黨自 1955 年以來幾乎不曾間斷地掌權，卻沒有人因為「價值觀不同」而質疑我們與日本的經濟關係。我們的人工智慧部長正尋求沙烏地阿拉伯王國的投資，以擴展我國的 AI 基礎設施。而美國雖然擁有與我們相似的多元政治體制，其民主制度卻已嚴重受到侵蝕。但我們通常不會因此質疑我們與美國的雙邊關係。

To achieve economic independence, Canada must pivot. Between 2018-19 and the end of 2023, Mexico-China trade grew 66 per cent while maintaining U.S. ties. Why can’t we? We also need to improve technology transfer from China in ways that increase our economic strength, expedite our innovation and protect our sovereignty.
為了實現經濟獨立，加拿大必須轉向。從 2018-19 年到 2023 年底，墨西哥與中國的貿易額在維持與美國關係的同時，增長了 66%。我們為何不能？我們也需要改善從中國的技術轉移，以增強我們的經濟實力、加速創新並保護我們的主權。

The greatest threat to Canadian sovereignty isn’t Chinese interference, it’s our servility to a U.S. that increasingly treats us as a vassal. When 95 per cent of global consumers live outside America, the fact that we rely on one increasingly unreliable partner for 75 per cent of our exports isn’t strategy, it’s strategic malpractice.
對加拿大主權最大的威脅，並非中國的干預，而是我們對美國的卑躬屈膝——一個日益將我們視為附庸的國家。當全球 95% 的消費者都居住在美國境外，而我們卻將 75% 的出口都押在一個越來越不可靠的夥伴身上，這不是什麼策略，而是策略上的失當。

Prime Minister Mark Carney now faces a defining choice: double down on that Atlanticist world view or embrace what Columbia University professor Jeffrey Sachs calls the “reality of the new multipolar world.” The relentless attack on Canadian prosperity and sovereignty over the past six months should make the choice obvious.
總理 Mark Carney 現在面臨一個關鍵抉擇：是加倍堅持大西洋主義的世界觀，還是擁抱哥倫比亞大學教授 Jeffrey Sachs 所謂的「新多極世界現實」。過去六個月來，加拿大繁榮與主權所遭受的無情打擊，應已讓這個選擇昭然若揭。