Carney building a castle in the air

After Mark Carney's victory in the leadership race for Canada's ruling Liberal Party in March, Beijing has clearly expressed its hope that the incoming government in Canada will adopt a positive and pragmatic approach toward China.

"We hope that the Canadian side will form an objective and rational perception of China... and work with China in the same direction for the improvement and growth of bilateral relations," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said, noting that China always believes that the two sides need to grow bilateral relations on the basis of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit.

In his meeting with his Canadian counterpart Melanie Joly in Lima, Peru's capital, in November, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi conveyed Beijing's openness to work with Ottawa to properly handle differences and keep bilateral ties developing on the right track, which, as the two sides agreed, serves the common interests of the two countries.