Canadian Diplomacy Research Articles

Canadian diplomacy in Southeast Asia: challenges for the coming decades

ABSTRACT Canada’s public commitment to raising its engagement with Southeast Asia is an important recognition of the region’s growing political, economic, and strategic significance to Canada. Despite an early postwar presence of Canadian diplomats in the region, significant development assistance and participation in key security initiatives and dialogs, Canada’s engagement in recent decades has been inconsistent and more limited. To renew its credibility in the region, Canada should commit to comprehensive, long-term investment in its ties with ASEAN countries that takes into account not only Canada’s domestically driven interests, but the region’s long-term challenges as well. At time when Canada needs more partners in the world, this approach can help strengthen and solidify key partnerships in Southeast Asia.

Language, Federalism and Canadian Diplomacy

Canadian diplomacy has greatly shaped Canada’s debates over language and vice versa. How has the history of Canadian diplomacy reflected the bilingual and bicultural nature of the country? Or, conversely, how have Canada’s debates over language and Quebec nationalism affected Canadian diplomacy? The answers are complex. Francophone diplomats played a key role in pushing for Canadian autonomy from Britain at the 1926 Imperial Conference. As Robert Talbot explained, “Canadian foreign policy was being shaped with French-Canadian and modern Anglo-Canadian priorities in mind.” This role was less prominent over the following three decades but, with the election of the Quebec Liberals in 1960, federal diplomacy became directly challenged by Quebec’s international ambitions. This tension reached a crisis point with the Montreal 1967 visit of General Charles De Gaulle, President of France, and again during the Quebec referendums of 1980 and 1995.

From the Green Zone to Havana Syndrome: Making Geographic Sense of Rotationality and Hardship in Diplomacy

Abstract Most foreign ministries use a rotational system in deploying personnel abroad, with diplomats moving between foreign posts every few years and earning salary premiums based on the risks, dangers, and hardships associated with different foreign posts. We examine rotationality and hardship in diplomacy, identifying these as spatial and institutional practices for managing a global network of diplomatic personnel and sites. These are institutionalized in foreign ministries’ processes for assessing and compensating hardship and danger, and embodied in the design, function, and locational contexts of embassy buildings in foreign capitals. We rely on empirical examples from the US and Canadian foreign services, looking at US embassies in Berlin and Baghdad, and “Havana syndrome” among American and Canadian diplomats and their family members. We conclude that security-heavy forms of hardship assessment and management can limit diplomats’ ability to build local knowledge and constrain the interaction and openness usually prized in diplomatic practice.

The ‘Anglo-Saxon Triangle’ Downplayed by Canada’s Department of External Affairs, 1946–1956

In July 1951, Canada’s Department of External Affairs despatched a secret policy paper to the heads of overseas Canadian posts, instructing Canadian diplomats abroad not to refer to Canada’s ‘inner triangle’ with Britain and the United States or encourage its development into a formal alliance. The explicitly named ‘Anglo-Saxon triangle’ was acknowledged affectionately as a ‘cornerstone of Canadian foreign policy’ but was regarded as damaging to the ultimate goal of a North Atlantic community inclusive of continental Europeans. The ‘inner triangle’ comprising Canada, the United States and Britain had to be concealed, and diplomats were warned not to speak of it publicly as an objective of policy, lest another triangle would form, that of a Franco-German–Italian grouping that would split the prospects of a North Atlantic alliance. The discovery of this secret despatch provides some explanation of why references to the North Atlantic Triangle faded from statements in the post-war years.

The Good Fight: Marcel Cadieux and Canadian Diplomacy. Brendan Kelly.

<i>The Good Fight: Marcel Cadieux and Canadian Diplomacy.</i> Brendan Kelly.

What lies ahead? Canada’s engagement with the Middle East Peace Process and the Palestinians: an Introduction

ABSTRACT This thematic issue of the Canadian Foreign Policy Journal explores Canada’s foreign policy relationship with the Palestinians and the Middle East Peace Process (MEPP). It does this through a combination of articles and policy commentaries by scholars from the academy and “pracademics” from government. This includes regional experts on Palestine, Palestinian refugees Palestinian state-building and Canadian foreign policy. The topics they cover include Canadian diplomacy on Israel-Palestine at the United Nations, the impact the international community and Canada have had on Israeli-Palestinian peacebuilding, Canada’s policy toward Palestinian refugees, Canadian development aid in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and an overview of Canadian foreign policy toward both the Palestinians and MEPP. This introduction sets the stage for their contributions by first providing an overview of the contemporary politics of the Middle East and where Israel-Palestine fits within them, including a brief account of peacebuilding efforts today. It also describes Canada’s not-insignificant contribution to the politics of the Middle East and towards the composure of Israel-Palestine today, and likewise the impact of each on Canada. In sum, the articles each explore a unique and important facet of the ongoing development of Canadian foreign policy toward the Palestinians and the MEPP.

The Good Fight: Marcel Cadieux and Canadian Diplomacy by Brendan Kelly

<i>The Good Fight: Marcel Cadieux and Canadian Diplomacy</i> by Brendan Kelly

George Drew, the Law of the Sea, and the Diefenbaker Government, 1957-1963

ABSTRACT Scholarly analysis of John Diefenbaker’s government between 1957 and 1963 has focused heavily on Diefenbaker’s influence in the conduct of Canadian foreign policy. From the “renegade in power” to the “rogue Tory”, Diefenbaker frequently receives the primary credit or blame for determining Canada’s place in the wider world. This traditional evaluation, however, ignores the broad latitude often given to senior Canadian diplomats. Diefenbaker’s high commissioner to Britain, George Drew, played a particularly important role in shaping Anglo-Canadian relations. Building on his senior status within Progressive Conservative ranks, Drew proved resolute and unorthodox in advancing Canadian interests. A detailed case study of Drew’s efforts to secure a comprehensive international agreement on the law of the sea demonstrates his impact on Canadian foreign policy. Drew headed the Canadian delegation to two United Nations law of the sea conferences in 1958 and 1960 and vigorously pursued an international agreement delineating the width of the territorial sea eventually brokered after the Diefenbaker government left office in 1963.

К вопросу о формировании идеи миротворчества (на примере Суэцкого кризиса 1956 года)

The Suez Crisis of 1956 is considered one of the most acute regional conflicts of the Cold War period. Two of the five member states of the Security Council were involved in the conflict, who actively exercised the right of “veto” during any attempts at settlement, which paralyzed the existing mechanism for resolving conflicts within the UN. The disagreements of the “great” powers threatened to grow from a diplomatic confrontation into a military one, and conflict from regional to global. The solution was found at one of the sessions of the General Assembly, where Canadian L.B. Pearson presented his idea of resolving the conflict by creating the UN Emergency Forces. The study is devoted to the idea of creating a UN peacekeeping force, the founder of which is Canadian diplomat L.B. Pearson. The purpose of this study is to analyze the role of L.B. Pearson in the formation of the idea of peacekeeping, on the example of participation in the settlement of the Suez Crisis. We discuss the historical aspects and conditions for the creation of the UN Emergency Forces, a comparative analysis was conducted with the first observation missions of the UN, substantiate principles, which became the basis for the functioning of peacekeeping forces. We draw conclusion that it was L.B. Pearson’s ideas that contributed to the resolution of one of the most acute crises of the second half of the 20th century, and the creation of peacekeeping forces proved the effectiveness of the UN in maintaining international peace and security, conflict resolution, and also laid the foundation for modern peacekeeping.

Canada at the United Nations: Achievements and Challenges

The 75th anniversary of the United Nations is an important event for Canada. This country was one of the founders of the UN, and then played a vigorous role in its activities. The article looks at both the successes and failures of Canadian diplomacy in the UN, and examines factors influencing the political course of Ottawa. Special attention is paid to recent events – the loss of Canada at the elections of non-permanent members of the UNSC in 2020.

Diplomat, Dissident, Spook: A Canadian Diplomat’s Chronicles through the Cold War and Beyond by Bill Warden (Lisa Warden, ed.)

Diplomat, Dissident, Spook: A Canadian Diplomat’s Chronicles through the Cold War and Beyond by Bill Warden (Lisa Warden, ed.)

Diplomats' Mystery Illness and Pulsed Radiofrequency/Microwave Radiation.

Importance: A mystery illness striking U.S. and Canadian diplomats to Cuba (and now China) "has confounded the FBI, the State Department and US intelligence agencies" (Lederman, Weissenstein, & Lee, 2017). Sonic explanations for the so-called health attacks have long dominated media reports, propelled by peculiar sounds heard and auditory symptoms experienced. Sonic mediation was justly rejected by experts. We assessed whether pulsed radiofrequency/microwave radiation (RF/MW) exposure can accommodate reported facts in diplomats, including unusual ones. Observations: (1) Noises: Many diplomats heard chirping, ringing or grinding noises at night during episodes reportedly triggering health problems. Some reported that noises were localized with laser-like precision or said the sounds seemed to follow them (within the territory in which they were perceived). Pulsed RF/MW engenders just these apparent "sounds" via the Frey effect. Perceived "sounds" differ by head dimensions and pulse characteristics and can be perceived as located behind in or above the head. Ability to hear the "sounds" depends on high-frequency hearing and low ambient noise. (2) Signs/symptoms: Hearing loss and tinnitus are prominent in affected diplomats and in RF/MW-affected individuals. Each of the protean symptoms that diplomats report also affect persons reporting symptoms from RF/MW: sleep problems, headaches, and cognitive problems dominate in both groups. Sensations of pressure or vibration figure in each. Both encompass vision, balance, and speech problems and nosebleeds. Brain injury and brain swelling are reported in both. (3) Mechanisms: Oxidative stress provides a documented mechanism of RF/MW injury compatible with reported signs and symptoms; sequelae of endothelial dysfunction (yielding blood flow compromise), membrane damage, blood-brain barrier disruption, mitochondrial injury, apoptosis, and autoimmune triggering afford downstream mechanisms, of varying persistence, that merit investigation. (4) Of note, microwaving of the U.S. embassy in Moscow is historically documented. Conclusions and relevance: Reported facts appear consistent with pulsed RF/MW as the source of injury in affected diplomats. Nondiplomats citing symptoms from RF/MW, often with an inciting pulsed-RF/MW exposure, report compatible health conditions. Under the RF/MW hypothesis, lessons learned for diplomats and for RF/MW-affected civilians may each aid the other.

“Six mois à Hanoi”: Marcel Cadieux, Canada, and the International Commission for Supervision and Control in Vietnam, 1954–5

Drawing on an unpublished memoir by Marcel Cadieux entitled “Six mois à Hanoi,” this article offers the first biographical study of a Canadian diplomat to serve on the International Commission for Supervision and Control in Vietnam. It argues that Cadieux's pioneering experience on that commission during its first months in 1954–5 shaped his pro-American views on the Vietnam War as under-secretary of state for external affairs between 1964 and 1970. It also uses Cadieux's tenure in Hanoi as a lens through which to explore larger issues of both long-standing and more recent interest to Canadian international historians, including the bureaucratic culture of the Department of External Affairs, Canadian diplomacy's relationship with the decolonizing countries of the Third World, and the role of race, culture, religion, and anti-communism in the making of Canadian foreign policy.

Reverse engineering the "sonic weapon" [News

Last August, reports emerged that U.S. and Canadian diplomats in Cuba had suffered a host of mysterious ailments. Speculation soon arose that a high-frequency sonic weapon was to blame. Acoustics experts, however, were quick to point out the unlikeliness of such an attack. Among other things, ultrasonic frequencies-from 20 to 200 kilohertz-don't propagate well in air and don't cause the ear pain, headache, dizziness, and other symptoms reported in Cuba. Also, some victims recalled hearing high-pitched sounds, whereas ultrasound is inaudible to humans.

No, Prime Minister: Revisiting Diefenbaker and the “Pearsonalities”

John Diefenbaker has been portrayed as having been out of his league in foreign affairs. In part, his lack of foreign policy successes have been blamed on his poor relationship with Canadian diplomats, who he feared were “Pearsonalities” loyal to former Liberal foreign minister Lester Pearson. Yet, historians have largely dismissed Diefenbaker's suspicions. First revisiting the poor relationship between Diefenbaker and the diplomats, this article then focuses on one highly divisive policy issue: the prime minister's rhetorical war against the Soviet Union, notably a campaign, carried out from 1960–62, to have the un pass a resolution condemning Soviet colonialism. Commentators have been unkind toward this campaign, in part because it was so obviously driven by domestic political calculations but also, and relatedly, because it sparked a feud between the prime minister and Canadian diplomats. As this article makes clear, there were in fact Pearsonalities actively working against Diefenbaker on this issue, a finding that raises questions about the Canadian tradition of civil service loyalty and that fits within the ongoing historiographical trend of adding nuance to the study of Diefenbaker's foreign policy.

Citizen Unique: Émile Vaillancourt: Forgotten Envoy across the Solitudes / Citoyen unique : Émile Vaillancourt, émissaire oublié entre deux solitudes

Robert Stacey had been drafting a letter to the editor of the Toronto Star in response to an article published in the November 27, 1996, issue, a profile by Ronald Hambleton of l’Abbé Arthur Maheux, who figures in William Weintraub’s City Unique: Montreal Days and Nights in the 1940s and ’50s (McClelland and Stewart, 1996). Stacey began writing a review of Weintraub’s book, but as he did so, he came across Joseph-Émile Vaillancourt (1889–1968), whom he referred to as “an early (‘premature’?) pro-federalist but also passionately pro-québécois historian, journalist and animateur of the 1920s–50s who strove in publication after publication to establish a rapprochement between anglophone and francophone Canada.” Stacey also had a connection to Vaillancourt through his grandfather, C.W. Jefferys, who had met up with Vaillancourt in the 1930s when Jefferys was conducting historical tours to Quebec and the Maritimes. Vaillancourt later had a distinguished career as a Canadian diplomat. Stacey’s article was written in the hopes that it would be accepted for publication by the editors of Cité Libre, but it never seems to have been submitted. The essay contains many citations, but Stacey did not include footnotes. To date, no formal biography of Vaillancourt exists.

Reflections on the Role of Non-state Actors in Canada–Asia Relations

The historical tension between the powers of states and the rights of individuals sets the context for this look at the evolving role of non-state actors in international relations. Global connectivity has diluted state power, blurred borders and added a new dimension of non-state actor empowerment. The author’s firsthand observations, drawn from a career as a Canadian diplomat, bear witness to the ever-increasing role of non-state actors in foreign policy and international relations. This practitioner’s perspective presents some personal observations on how non-state actors have helped to shape Canada–Asia relations, with brief and selective examples from the author’s work in and on Indonesia, Japan, Myanmar, Afghanistan and Pakistan. The piece also offers some concluding thoughts on the significance of this phenomenon for the broader conduct of international relations and the study of foreign policy.

50 Years of NPSIA: reflections from directors

Following World War II, Canada enjoyed an international standing unprecedented in the young nation’s history. Canada’s involvement in the foundation of the International Monetary Fund, and its contribution to the Marshall Plan and the engineering of the United Nations Emergency AQ5 Force, demanded new generations of specialized and skilled foreign policy-minded civil servants. With a donation from Senator Norman Paterson, the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs (NPSIA) was founded to address the issues of the post-war global environment. As a professional school of international affairs located in Canada’s capital, the School has emerged as an integral part of the nation’s international affairs community. To celebrate NPSIA’s 50th anniversary, the Canadian Foreign Policy Journal, in partnership with its policy outreach platform iAffairs, asked past and present Directors of the School about their views on its evolution throughout the years. The following is a brief compilation of transcripts from interviews with Christopher Maule, NPSIA’s Director from 1988 to 1993; Maureen Molot, Director from 1993 to 2002; Fen Hampson, Director from 2002 to 2012; and the present Director, Dane Rowlands, whose tenure began in 2012. The objective of the excerpts is to enrich our understanding of NPSIA’s past and future role as a professional school in the training of Canadian entrepreneurs, advisors, analysts, diplomats and policymakers.

Following the American lead: Canada’s Cuba policy, 1945–1951

ABSTRACTDrawing on correspondence between Canada’s Department of External Affairs (DEA) and the Canadian legation in Havana, this article examines the evolution of Canada’s Cuba policy from 1945 to 1951 within the context of shifting international realities, Canadian–US relations, and the changing dynamics of Canadian diplomatic personnel. The preponderant necessities of the Cold War, specifically Canada’s alliance with the United States against the threat of Soviet expansion, persuaded senior DEA officials, as well as Canadian diplomats on the ground in Havana, to support the US-led status quo in Cuba. Far from being forced into supporting the US line, Canadian diplomats – both in Havana and Ottawa – shared the same fundamental Cold War ideology as their US counterparts. Moreover, Canada’s policy toward Cuba – which differed substantially from the United States after 1959 – was barely distinguishable from that of the United States during the pre-revolutionary period. In this way, rather than showcasing Canada and Cuba’s shared refusal to “exist merely as the satellite” of the United States – a trait that has distinguished Canada and Cuba’s bilateral relationship during the Castro years – relations between 1945 and 1951 show that Canada was satisfied to follow the US lead.

Confessions of a Teacher, and Historian, of Canadian Diplomacy

This brief response unpacks and contextualizes the alleged tragedy of a “lack of an effective countervailing voice that could respond to the instrumentalization of Canada's international history for reactionary ends.” Rather than advocating a single voice, it suggests the use of multiple perspectives. For international history to flourish in Canada, it explains, we must welcome all sorts of histories, from the bottom and from the top, written for academic and popular audiences and from micro- and macro-level perspectives. A failure to work together, and thereby validate one another's interests and passions, can only lead to further instrumentalization, and nothing would be more tragic than that.