In the News

APF Canada's media responses to the latest issues and events in Asia

Al Jazeera

Inde : Modi doit établir un programme économique « ambitieux » après la chute dans les urnes

Al Jazeera, 9 juin 2024

Avec : Vina Nadjibulla, vice-présidente, Recherche et stratégie, FAP Canada

Extrait : « Les investisseurs craignent que Modi ne soit pas en mesure de faire passer les réformes nécessaires pour résoudre des problèmes tels que le chômage élevé. »

Toronto Star

The Trudeau government says a new law will tackle foreign interference. Critics say it’s not nearly enough

Toronto Star, June 5, 2024

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

Extract: “These are shocking allegations. It’s important to know what kind of privileged information was transferred, but at the very least, it is clear that the allegations are in violation of an MP’s oath of office and could be dealt with as an ethics violation by a public office holder."

Business in Vancouver

What the expansion of the Trans-Pacific Partnership means for B.C. businesses

Business in Vancouver, May 22, 2024

Featuring: Anastasia Ufimtseva, APF Canada International Trade and Investment Program Manager

Extract: “They need much more support to figure out how those tariffs apply to them and how to take advantage of them. [CPTPP] is providing the framework and now we need to make sure that specific groups benefit.”

The Globe and Mail

Philippines seeking Canada’s help to avoid ‘great power rivalry’ between China, U.S.

The Globe and Mail, May 14, 2024

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

Extract:“If we want to deepen our economic as well as strategic relations with the region, the Philippines is the place where we have the greatest chance of making that happen,” she said.

CTV News

Sikh activist murder triggered diplomatic tensions

CTV News, May 8, 2024

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

Extract: "We have to remember that even within the Sikh-Indo-Canadian community, only a small fraction are Khalistani supporters. We to see the totality of the diaspora community and the complexities of these issues, but above all, have to maintain open channels."

CBC News

The Nijjar case: CBC News Network's Natalie Kalata talks with Vina Nadjibulla of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada

CBC News, May 4, 2024

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

Extract: "While the criminal side [of the investigation] is now moving ahead with three suspects arrested, there's a much bigger national security case that is linking what's happening here in Canada, in the U.S., as well as other places like Australia and the UK, which also have a large diaspora community."

Global News

The West Block: April 14, 2024

Global News, April 15, 2024

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

Reporter: Mercedes Stephenson

Extract:  Mercedes Stephenson: What is your impression of what CSIS does know about the situation and whether or not, they would be transmitting that to especially the Prime Minister's Office. 

Vina Nadjibulla: I think the important thing here is that foreign interference is such a challenging issue to deal with, that we need a whole-of-government approach and then a whole-of-society approach. The fact that we haven't yet managed a whole-of-government approach and an understanding between our elected officials, between our civil servants, and between our intelligence officials in terms of the nature of the threat is concerning. What we saw this week was that clearly, our intelligence services believe that foreign interference is a grave threat. They even used the word 'existential threat' and that wasn’t really the impression that one was given if listening to the testimony of other officials this week. So I think the challenge for us is to really come to a common understanding of the gravity of this issue in the way that our allies in the US, in Australia, and the U.K. have, and then from there build a whole-of-society approach, which is really where our Foundation comes in.

Toronto Star

Beijing is looking to improve relations with Ottawa. Should Canada play ball?

The Canadian Press (syndicated), April 8, 2024

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

Reporter: Dylan Robertson via Canadian Press

Extract: Vina Nadjibulla, the research vice-president for the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada and the primary advocate for Kovrig during his detention, said China took a more assertive posture on the world stage around the time the two Michaels were detained, forcing a rethink in Washington.

She noted that despite the chill in relations and persistent irritants — like Canada’s concern with alleged interference in recent federal elections — Canada’s bilateral trade with China has actually grown in recent years.
 
“We need to get out of this framing of needing to win favour with China to be able to have a functional relationship,” she said. “The state of our relations with China is what it needs to be, and it’s moving in the direction to be more functional to serve our interests.”
 
There needs to be some engagement with China, Nadjibulla said, on security in the Indo-Pacific region and transnational issues such as stopping the flow of fentanyl.
 
At the same time, she said Ottawa should call out Chinese actions in the South China Sea that undermine the international boundaries of the Philippines and continue to support Taiwan.
 
“My hope is that as we stabilize relations with (Beijing) we don’t lose sight of the fact that we need to continue to deepen engagement with Taiwan, and we don’t let any kind of pressure or self-censorship come into the equation,” she added.
 
 
Globe & Mail

The Globe & Mail

Taiwan seeks bilateral trade agreement with Canada as it waits to join pan-Pacific trade pact

The Globe and Mail, March 18, 2024

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

Reporter: Steven Chase

Extract: Vina Nadjibulla, vice-president of research and strategy at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada, said Ottawa’s position as chair of the Trans-Pacific Partnership commission for 2024 offers a chance for the Canadian government to set up a transparent process for assessing and accepting new members.

“Canada takes up the chair of the commission at an opportune moment to show some leadership and move forward the process – at least by which future candidates would be evaluated and applications would be considered,” Ms. Nadjibulla said.

She said Canada could kick-start the task of creating a transparent merit-based process, which all aspirant countries and economies would have to meet to be able to join.

“You’re not saying no to this particular applicant or this particular country,” she said, “you’re just saying we need to all agree on the process and a set of standards.”

Globe & Mail

Latest detentions raise renewed questions about safety of foreigners in China

The Globe and Mail, February 12, 2024

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

Reporter: James Griffiths

Extract: While greater awareness can reduce risk, it is contributing to a “reduction in connectivity, which is not in itself a good thing,” said Vina Nadjibulla, vice-president for research and strategy at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. “At a time when we need to understand China the most, it’s difficult for people to travel.” 

This is a problem for China as well, Ms. Nadjibulla said, one she hopes might be a deterrent against future arbitrary prosecutions, given that Beijing is actively trying to increase foreign investment and stop the trend of companies moving operations out of the country.

CGAI homepage screenshot

Asia After the Taiwanese Election

Canadian Global Affairs Institute, February 5, 2024

Featuring: Vina Nadjibulla, Vice-President Research & Strategy, and Hugh Stephens, Distinguished Fellow, Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada

Host: Colin Robertson

Extract: In this episode of The Global Exchange podcast, Colin Robertson is joined by Vina Nadjibulla and Hugh Stephens from APF Canada, along with Stephen Nagy and John Gruetzner to discuss the Taiwanese election and its implications for Asia.

CTV homepage clip

Courtesy CTV News

Analysts propose more Canadian ties to Southeast Asia amid chill with India, China

CTV News, February 2, 2024

Featuring: Jeff Nankivell, President and CEO, Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada

Reporter: Dylan Robertson via Canadian Press

Extract: At the December conference [hosted by the Institute for Peace and Diplomacy], the head of the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada seemed to hint that having the Conservatives signal their intent to maintain the core planks of the Indo-Pacific strategy would help cement relations with countries across the Asia.

"If you were thinking about coming into government and you thought this was generally something you didn't want to torpedo, it sure would be good to send some positive signals to the rest of the world," said Jeff Nankivell, president of the think tank, which is largely funded by the federal government. "We'd really like to see foreign policy being debated more in domestic circles in Canada, because we finally got the attention of some interlocutors in some parts of the Indo-Pacific region. Now that they're paying attention, I think we need to put our best foot forward."

Global News

Former CSIS head says inquiry timeline makes dealing with foreign interference substantively ‘impossible’

Global News, January 29, 2024

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

Host: Mercedes Stephenson

Extract: Vina Nadjibulla: Foreign interference is already a major issue in our bilateral relationship with China. As you know, a number of other countries have been able to have high-level dialogue, including our allies, the US, the UK, and many European countries with China. China is not extending the same opportunity to Canada because of foreign interference and how this is unfolding. So that is continuing to put a strain on that relationship. With respect to India, it's already a challenging relationship, and just the addition of India to the inquiry formally in the last couple of days has already created a backlash in Indian media. We're watching that very closely. Of course, the argument that India is making is that all of this is essentially for political reasons, that Prime Minister Trudeau is trying to deflect attention and blame and essentially is trying to smear India's reputation. So we'll have to manage this very carefully. But that should not deter us from pursuing the public inquiry and getting to the bottom of the facts of what, in fact, happened and how the government has responded. Because relations with certainly China, Russia, Iran, India, there's complexity in that, and we have to be able to engage in dialogue when we must, but also recognize that ultimately we have to protect our own national interest and our own people here at home.

Business in Vancouver

B.C. businesses are exposed to China’s sputtering economy

Business in Vancouver, January 23, 2024

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

Reporter: Nelson Bennett

Extract: Nadjibulla noted that, when B.C. Premier David Eby went on an Asian trade mission last year, he gave China a skip. B.C. opened a new trade office in Taiwan and introduced a new Trade Diversification Strategy aimed at increasing trade options in Asia outside of Mainland China.

“I think we will see a decline (in exports to China), and I think for those businesses the game is diversifying and de-risking,” Nadjibulla said. “As far as new businesses who are starting to export, they will be encouraged to look at markets outside of China.”