Shape foreign policy?

Contributor: russilwvong

Date: 2003-04-22 19:39:47

Question 1 asks what interests and values Canadian foreign policy ought to be based on.

The fundamental principles described by Louis St. Laurent in his 1947 Gray Lecture have held up pretty well, in my humble opinion:

1. National unity

2. Political liberty

3. The rule of law

4. Human values and moral principles

5. Acceptance of international responsibilities

I find it curious that the dialogue paper never mentions national unity, which is clearly a vital Canadian interest. (For Canada to have participated in the recent war in Iraq would have threatened national unity, for example.)

St. Laurent also emphasized the importance of particular relationships to Canada:

1. Britain and the Commonwealth

2. The United States

3. France

Today, Canada's relationship with the US has clearly eclipsed its relationship with Britain. This raises some tough questions: how can Canada manage its relationship with the US, without becoming excessively dependent?

I would suggest that Canada ought to be firm on matters of vital national interest, but that it ought to refrain from opposing or criticizing the US on matters where it is unlikely to succeed. As St. Laurent said:

"We have, of course, been forced to keep in mind the limitations upon the influence of any secondary power. No society of nations can prosper if it does not have the support of those who hold the major share of the world's military and economic power. There is little point in a country of our stature recommending international action, if those who must carry the major burden of whatever action is taken are not in sympathy."

Canadian diplomats ought to be realists rather than romanticists. As Escott Reid noted, "In the event of war, we shall have no freedom of action in any matter which the United States considers essential." Even in peacetime, Canada's freedom of action is limited.

Reinhold Niebuhr's aphorism -- "May God grant me the courage to change the things I can, the serenity to accept the things I cannot, and the wisdom to know the difference" -- seems apt here.

I'd recommend that any Canadian participants who are interested in foreign policy take the time to look up and read the Gray Lecture ("The Foundations of Canadian Policy in World Affairs"). I'll see if I can get permission to put it up on my website.

Some other recommended reading:

Robert Bothwell, "The Big Chill: Canada and the Cold War." Good overview of Canadian diplomacy during from the end of World War II to the end of the Cold War.

Greg Donaghy, ed., "Canada and the Early Cold War, 1943-1957." Full text available on the DFAIT website.

Hans Morgenthau, "Politics Among Nations: The Struggle for Power and Peace." The bible of power politics.

Russil Wvong
www.geocities.com/rwvong