The US and Canada moved to ease tensions with China and each other following the untimely arrest of a top Chinese executive. Meng Wanzhou, chief financial officer for Huawei, was arrested in Canada at the behest of the US. The United States government accused her of misleading business deals in Iran, The Spokesman reported.
China was quick to move to dispel the rumors, even as it struggled to find a diplomatic way out of the scuffle that the three countries found themselves in. Canada, for its part, had found itself stuck uncomfortably in the middle. US president Donald Trump has commented on the issue, saying he was willing to work with China on the case, provided that it was a way for both countries to enter a favorable trade agreement.
Canada, on the other hand, saw a negative in Trump's plan. This did not dampen the US and Canada's commitment to each other, however, citing a historical fact that both countries enjoyed deep cooperation and ties. This included major issues on countries in the Middle East like Iraq and Syria as well as Russia and Ukraine.
Canada, meanwhile, echoed concerns about what the punitive actions by the United States might have in store for them.
Global Times reported the country trying to find a diplomatic answer in favor of China. China had been an active buyer of Canadian real estate properties in Vancouver and other territories. Chinese investors had also been responsible for a large chunk of housing sales in the country. With this incident, the fears are real that China might be forced to answer with cancellations in property purchases.
Even before the incident, Chinese migration toward Canada was already on the downtrend. Wang Lunwen, CEO of Sky Migration, revealed that Canadian properties were already being avoided by the Chinese. This following a tightening of the immigration policy in the country as well as the imposition of an extra 15 to 20 percent property taxes on foreign buyers.
With Trump's comments, as well as the natural cooling of buyers due to the taxes and policies in Canada, there is a fear that the country will suffer the most out of the three. Canada currently is among the biggest trade partners of China outside of the US due to the trade spat, while Trump has been seen routinely attacking the country's policies-particularly those of Canadian PM Justin Trudeau.
