Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney was recently in Jeddah to drum up business with Saudi Arabia, a wealthy and influential Arab state. He was the first leader from Canada to visit this oil-rich Arab nation in 26 years. While there, he met Saudi leader Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and discussed plans to deepen cooperation in trade and defense within the framework of the newly established Canada-Saudi Arabia Co-ordination Council.

It was an important trip in light of Carney’s intention to diversify Canada’s commercial relations with international partners and to be less reliant on the United States, whose current president, Donald Trump, has shown himself to be unfriendly and even hostile to Canada.

During his press conference, Carney was asked why he seeks to engage with an authoritarian monarchy that scoffs at democratic norms and flouts human rights.

It was a good question of direct relevance Canada.

In 2018, Saudi Arabia expelled Canada’s ambassador in Jeddah after the then Canadian foreign minister, Chrystia Freeland, called for the immediate release of several imprisoned Saudi political activists.

The rupture between Canada and Saudi Arabia deepened after the dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was murdered in Saudi Arabia’s consulate in Istanbul.........

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