Canada's slide into irrelevance on the international stage

by Maj (ret'd) CORNELIU. CHISU, CD, PMSC, FEC, CET, P. Eng. Former Member of Parliament Pickering-Scarborough East The Cold War is not so far in the distant past that we should have forgotten it. It was a time when two superpowers, the United States of America and the Soviet Union vied for influence in the world. A time when poorer or less connected nations were frequently forced into joining the West or the East in a global struggle for dominance. It was, however, a relatively balanced world. On the surface, it appeared to be a struggle of democracy against Communism, but underneath it all, the fight was for access to natural resources, strategic geographic advantage, or physical security. Less-powerful nations swore their allegiance to one side or the other in order to gain benefit; either economically, or as a means of propping up puppet dictators. At that time Canada was an active and respected nation on the international scene with a balanced view of the world that made significant contributions to establishing institutions for promoting true democratic values. Once the Cold war ended and the remaining superpower, the United States of America, had the upper hand, Canada slowly started to fade into oblivion. With the emergency of China as an economic and new military power, and Russia working to re-establish itself as the new superpower successor of the former Soviet Union, flexing its military muscle, the world order is changing rapidly. That old world order is no longer viable and the new emerging one is fragmenting more every day. A significant number of countries are gingerly charting their own paths while being careful not to offend the Big Three - America, Russia, and China - that continue to hold massive amounts of influence and power. It is, however, a dangerous world and Canada seems to be lost in space; totally lacking in ideas, and being taken less seriously on the international scene. More and more, countries are extracting themselves from under the influence of the all-mighty dollar. There is a tendency to find alternative trade currency such as the establishment of the BRICS nations movement which is getting more traction by the day. The United States seems to underestimate these trends and continues to act as if it were still the only superpower in the world. It is time for the United States to wake up to these new realities, abandon complacencies, and act with the professionalism for which it was once known. Many nations today are aware of the increasingly polarized world and try to look to their own interests in a new way. They become smarter and most of them try to avoid choosing sides in an economic climate that appears to lurch one way, then the other. They prefer to remain on the sidelines and hope to play the bigger powers against one another to benefit their economies. Why not work with United States of America, China and Russia, if they can gain an advantage from them, they reason and are not wrong. However, it seems that Canada is out of touch with respect to this kind of reasoning. Its global affairs actions and philosophies are missing in action in this new and dynamically changing world. Therefore, we are seeing an increasing tendency for non-allied countries to gain more relevance. In the future, we will see a revival of, and more actions from the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) established after the Korean War. It is a forum of 120 countries that are not formally aligned with or against any major power bloc. After the United Nations, it is the largest grouping of states worldwide. We can already see a move in this direction as the Middle Eastern region, large swaths of Africa, and the vast interests of Asia are increasingly leaning toward this approach. The dominant geopolitical structure of the post-World War II era continues to carry great weight among historical allies. However, even that is now under threat. Russia has lost many of its satellite nations, while China has acquired more partnerships. For the United States, it's a lot more complicated as nations that were once solid members of the old Western alliance will prefer to place themselves in the "non-aligned" column in the future. China obviously watches all this with keen interest and is seeking to alter the historical equation of democratic alliances. "China is putting its pieces all over the board," one Western diplomatic official noted recently to the Economist. The country has proved somewhat effective at building economic alliances instead of ideological ones, and this approach suits the interests of dozens of nations. I am concerned that this evolution in the non-alignment movement is not well understood and only followed with superficial interest at Global Affairs Canada. Not to mention the complete neglect this trend suffers in parliamentary diplomacy. Once one of the world's better-known "soft powers," Canada is slowly sliding into oblivion, unless it finds a way to transform, and do so quickly. It is naturally assumed that Canada will continue in its loyalty to the great Western alliance, but it need not do so to the exclusion of other nations now making their presence known on the world stage. The future of alliances among nations is a fluid movement that increasingly defies descriptions and, at times, understanding. However, it is a world where Canada will require all its diplomatic skills to forge its unique path; opening doors to new relationships while maintaining historical ones will prove crucial. The question remains, however, whether Canada is ready for the new world alignment under construction? Let's hope for the best.