After several years of conflict, now is not the time for Canada to consider China’s suggestion of creating a closer relationship.

During the July 19 meeting of Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly with China’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Wang Yi, in Beijing, Wang floated the idea that the two countries should advance toward a strategic partnership.

Although Wang’s proposal will surely have its cheerleaders in Canada, it is still too early to put behind us the detentions of Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig, the ongoing imprisonment of Huseyin Celil, and interference in our democracy. Moreover, it is unrealistic in the light of disruptive Chinese aggression in the Indo-Pacific region.