Saudi Arabia cut diplomatic and trade ties with Canada over the weekend after the Canadian government in Ottawa called for the release of several women’s rights activists who are imprisoned in the Middle Eastern country.
Saudi Arabia announced that it would not engage in any new trade dealings with Canada in response to Ottawa’s call for the release of women’s rights activists. Saudi Arabia recalled its ambassador to Ottawa and ordered the Canadian envoy to Riyadh to leave within 24 hours, according to a news release issued by Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry.
The Saudi Foreign Ministry cited remarks last week by Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland and the Canadian embassy in Riyadh, criticizing the arrests of women’s rights activists such as Samar Badawi. She is a Canadian citizen whose brother, Raif Badawi, a blogger who was critical of the government, was already in jail in the Saudi kingdom.
Canada’s remarks are "an affront to the kingdom that requires a sharp response to prevent any party from attempting to meddle with Saudi sovereignty," the Ministry said in the news release.
In recent months, Saudi Arabia has reacted more aggressively against countries that it perceives as intervening in its internal affairs. In little more than a year, the kingdom has led a four-country coalition that severed ties with neighbouring Qatar, recalled its ambassador to Germany and cut back its trade dealings with some German companies amid a diplomatic row.
The standoff pits a Saudi government that’s slowly opening the door to women’s rights against Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, an outspoken champion of women’s advancement, who named a gender-balanced cabinet shortly after his 2015 election.
Just two months ago, Saudi women were given the right to drive a car, yet several of the country’s most prominent women’s rights activists -- including some who fought for years to drive -- were arrested earlier this year on national security grounds.
Saudi investments in Canada include G3 Global Holdings Ltd., a joint venture between Bunge Ltd. and Saudi Agricultural & Livestock Investment Co., which purchased the former Canadian Wheat Board in 2015. Saudi Arabia has invested about $6 billion U.S. in Canadian businesses since 2006, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
Tanks, armored vehicles and parts and motor vehicles accounted for about 45% of Canada’s 2016 exports to the kingdom, while crude oil and copper ores comprised about 98% of imports, according to a government report. Saudi Arabia supplies oil to the Irving refinery in Saint John, New Brunswick.
