Calgary [Canada], June 17 : Canadian journalist Daniel Bordman shed light on the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's to attend the 51st G7 Summit in Kananaskis, Alberta amid the complex dynamics between India and Canada, particularly regarding the Sikh extremist.
Bordman described the visit as a "significant" development with implications for domestic politics, trade, and the country's handling of extremism.
Bordman said that the Khalistan movement is a significant obstacle in India-Canada relations. He asserted that Canada's leniency towards Sikh separatist groups operating in Canada, allegedly funded by Pakistan, is perceived as support for terrorism and balkanization by India.
"It is pretty significant for Canada because, for the last 10 years, Canadian politics has been defined externally by chaos and bad actors, and internally by buffoonery... Canadians are happy to have a Prime Minister who speaks in full sentences and counts to ten without his fingers...," said Bordman.
Bordman views this development as a positive step towards counter-radicalization in Canada. He criticisesed the current liberal government's approach, suggesting that economic interests should take precedence over supporting groups that undermine nation-states.
"The major sticking point that Canada and India had is the Khalistan movement and the support of outright terrorism and balkanisation in the country... No one wants India to go through internal separation again, but there is a push outside of India to undermine it, mostly funded by Pakistan. All the groups who want to destroy India are the same who want to destroy Israel and America they undermine the concept of a nation-state... Canada has become a hub of all these bad actors...," said Bordman.
Bordman views PM Modi's visit as a turning point in Canada's approach to the Khalistan issue. He said that by engaging with India, Canada is distancing itself from its previous permissive stance towards terrorists and separatists.
"By inviting PM Modi, it is a pretty hard shift for Mark Carney to distance the liberal brand from the permissive of terrorists and separatists... This is a good first step to counter-radicalisation... We are at the maximum Khalistani nonsense in Canada, with a liberal close inner circle in the cabinet, propped up by Jagmeet Singh's NDP... The biggest Khalistani power display is in Surrey right now... The Khalistani menace seems to be toned down because Mark Carney is an economist... There is more money in trade with India, a real country with billions of people, than there is with a Pakistani proxy, propped up by China, who run around and run drugs for the country... We have everything India needs, and India has a huge consumer base...," added the Canadian journalist.
Bordman highlighted the economic costs of not addressing the Khalistan issue, citing the potential harm to Canada's credibility and trade relationships with other countries, including India. He noted that India is a significant market with a huge consumer base, making it an attractive trade partner.
Further elaborating on the implications of the visit, Bordman said, "... The crackdown on Khalistan and trade with India are linked. Canada's trade with every other country is linked to the same thing. Suppose you have a transnational criminal organisation in your ports and running logistics in your country, like the Khalistanis run drugs through the truck industry. In that case, it poses a real problem economically and trade-wise... If Canada wants to be a player on the world stage, we need to do something about Khalistan because these people are significantly harming Canada in the social fabric and also have a huge economic cost... Their involvement in our system will reduce our credibility in countries that want to trade with us..."
PM Modi's visit to Canada comes after a period of friction between New Delhi and Ottawa, triggered by Canadian allegations that Indian agents were involved in the killing of NIA-designated terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar outside a gurdwara in Canada in 2023.
India had strongly rejected the allegations. The diplomatic standoff escalated as both countries expelled senior diplomats in a tit-for-tat response. New Delhi has consistently voiced concerns about extremism and anti-India activities on Canadian soil and urged Canadian authorities to take concrete steps to curb such elements.
This visit is part of PM Modi's three-nation official tour, which began with Cyprus and will conclude with Croatia.
The G7 Summit, which PM Modi is set to attend on June 16-17, is an annual gathering of leaders from the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, Canada, and the European Union (EU). This marks PM Modi's sixth consecutive participation in the G7 Summit.
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