After eight long years of diplomatic frost, a Canadian prime minister is back in Beijing.
Mark Carney touched down on Wednesday, marking the first such visit since 2017—and raising a big question: is this the start of a reset?
Carney is set to meet President Xi Jinping on Friday.
This follows a brief encounter at an Asia-Pacific summit last year that he called a “turning point” in strained ties.
That strain has deep roots. Relations nosedived in 2018 after Canada arrested a senior Huawei executive on a US warrant.
It triggered China’s detention of two Canadians and years of mutual suspicion.
Canada-China Tensions
Allegations of Chinese interference in Canadian elections only deepened the chill.
This trip, then, comes with history—and pressure.
Alongside Xi, Carney will meet Premier Li Qiang and business leaders, hoping trade can help warm the relationship.
Beijing says it “attaches high importance” to the visit, but the numbers tell a sobering story.
Chinese data released the same day showed imports from Canada fell 10.4% in 2025, the first drop since the pandemic.
A reminder, perhaps, of China’s economic leverage.
So is this a diplomatic olive branch or a polite test of limits? Either way, every handshake in Beijing will be closely watched.
