India (Commonwealth Union) _ Karthik Nachiappan, a senior fellow with the Macdonald Laurier Institute and a research fellow at the Institute of South Asian Studies at the National University of Singapore, believes that a change of government in Canada is necessary to repair the strained relationship between Canada and India. Nachiappan argues that there is too much ideological, political, and personal baggage associated with Justin Trudeau and the Liberals in their approach to India. He suggests that a new government would need to reset political relations with the Indian government and limit the influence of diaspora groups in Canadian foreign policy.
Nachiappan points out that there have been tensions over Sikh extremism with both Conservative and Liberal governments, but the Liberals have faced criticism for attending events with Khalistani elements and glorifying Khalistan, a Sikh homeland in Punjab. He believes that this disinterest in addressing Sikh separatism and attending such events has strained relations with India.
Moreover, Nachiappan suggests that Canada’s Indo-Pacific strategy, which views India as a counter-balance to China, is now in jeopardy due to the diplomatic spat. He argues that Canada’s inability to develop a close and strategic relationship with India undermines the Indo-Pacific strategy as a whole.
In terms of Canada’s foreign policy, Nachiappan notes that the country’s only leverage is to internationalize the issue of foreign interference, but he believes that allies like the U.S. and U.K. are unlikely to side with Canada over India due to their strategic considerations favoring India as a counterweight to China.
In summary, Nachiappan asserts that a change of government in Canada is necessary to improve relations with India and align with the country’s strategic interests in the Indo-Pacific region. However, he acknowledges that repairing the damage caused by the current diplomatic spat will not be easy and may have broader implications for Canada’s foreign policy.
