Timidity

It’s especially dangerous in the face of People’s Republic of China aggression. Yet it’s the position of Canada’s Justin Trudeau government. Don’t angrify the bully.

The Halifax Security Forum is a congress of international security experts:

…sponsored by NATO [and by the Canadian government, the latter especially with money], draws scores of powerful military and civilian leaders. Previous speakers have included then-US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel; Admiral Phil Davidson, the commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command; Canadian Defense Minister Harjit Sajjan; and officials from a host of other countries, including Israel, Estonia, Afghanistan, Yemen, Poland and Japan.

And

The forum’s website states it is “devoted to strengthening strategic cooperation among democratic nations.”

But it seems that Trudeau and his coterie aren’t that devoted.

The Forum had planned on awarding its John McCain Prize to the Republic of China’s President, Tsai Ing-wen for standing strong against China’s relentless pressure. Its two prior recipients were the people of Lesbos, Greece, for their efforts to save refugees; the second, in 2019, went to the citizen protesters in Hong Kong.

But the President of the RoC apparently is a bridge too far, requiring more courage to support than Trudeau seems able to muster.

When Canadian officials learned of the forum’s plans, they made it clear that if organizers gave the honor to Tsai, the Canadian government would pull support—and funding—from HFX.

This is not a proper government for the nation whose people helped face down tyranny in world wars of the past and who helped send a later tyranny, the USSR, into the garbage can of history.

Sadly, the Forum now seems to be dithering in the face of Trudeau’s pro-PRC threats.

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