Canadaupdated 54m ago2 min read
Mark Carney Defends Canada’s Strategic Partnership With Turkey Amid LGBTQ Crackdown Concerns
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Canada and Turkey launched a three-year strategic partnership aiming to secure a free trade agreement. Carney defended ties with Turkey despite LGBTQ crackdown criticisms.
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“Concern about the authoritarian reflexes of the Turkish government have partly overshadowed Carney's initiative to deepen trade ties.”
“‘Engagement is not approval,’ he said.”
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Values and Trade
Prime Minister Mark Carney defended Canada’s approach to balancing human rights and trade, saying very few countries can meet Canada’s standards as he neared the end of his trip to Turkey. Carney said, "Engagement in those partnerships does not mean approval," and he added, "There are very few countries in this world that have the standards of Canada." Carney signed a strategic partnership with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand raised human rights with her counterpart during meetings on Thursday, according to the Prime Minister’s Office.
Carney told reporters that his approach relied on direct conversations with leaders, saying, "My approach on these issues is I have direct conversations with leaders," and he said those conversations are "more effective when they're direct and open". Carney also pushed back against allegations of Canadian interference in the U.S. midterm elections, telling reporters, "There is no merit to these claims, so I'll call it out that way."
LGBTQ Crackdown and Criticism
Carney defended deepening ties with Turkey despite a raid of LGBTQ groups, telling reporters in Istanbul on Friday that his job was to safeguard human rights inside Canada while also finding new export markets abroad. Carney said, "Engagement is not approval," and he argued that "There are very few countries in this world that have the standards of Canada, the rights of Canada" so that "all Canadians can live their lives as they choose." The Globe and Mail reported that Freedom House scored Turkey 32/100 on its civil liberties index, describing the country as "not free" and saying Erdogan and his party "have become increasingly authoritarian in recent years."
The Globe and Mail also reported that Turkey had taken over a pro-opposition media outlet, raided LGBTQ groups, and convicted a stand-up comic of insulting the country’s President. Carney rejected a question about whether meeting Erdogan legitimized the President’s actions, saying "No."
Free Trade Talks Ahead
Canada and Turkey launched a three-year strategic partnership aimed in part at securing a free-trade agreement, with Carney announcing that Canadian negotiators would return to Turkey next month to begin negotiations. Carney said, "By lowering costs, cutting barriers and creating greater certainty, we will open new doors for companies and investors in both of our countries," and he called Turkey an "exceptional partner." The Canadian Press reported that Erdogan said he hoped trade between the two countries would roughly double to $10 billion and that he planned to visit Canada with a group of Turkish business leaders.
The Prime Minister’s Office said the partnership also included an expanded air transport agreement that could nearly double the number of flights between Canada and Turkey, assuming airlines take up the new route capacity. The Canadian Press reported that Carney was expected to speak with Canadian media on Friday in Istanbul after the political talks in Ankara on Thursday.