Martin Cauchon, a justice minister in Jean Chrétien’s government, has a long history of developing close business ties with China.Peter Power/The Globe and Mail
Martin Cauchon, a vice-chair of the Canada China Business Council lobby group and former Liberal cabinet minister, is under consideration to be Ottawa’s envoy to China as both countries work to mend fractured diplomatic and economic ties, three sources say.
Mr. Cauchon, a justice minister in Jean Chrétien’s government, has a long history of developing close business ties with China. Prime Minister Mark Carney is seeking a business-friendly relationship with Beijing as he looks to diversify trade away from the United States. He has set out to double non-U.S. exports globally over the next decade.
The sources say other high-profile names that have been under consideration include Canadian Olympic Committee chief executive officer David Shoemaker, former Newfoundland and Labrador premier Brian Tobin and former B.C. premier Christy Clark. Before joining the COC, Mr. Shoemaker spent seven years as CEO of NBA China.
Mr. Shoemaker, Mr. Tobin and Ms. Clark did not immediately respond to requests for comment. One of the sources said Mr. Tobin, vice-chair of BMO Financial Group, informed the government that he is not interested in the ambassadorial posting at this stage in his life.
The Prime Minister’s Office would only say in a statement to The Globe and Mail that “diplomatic appointments are made through a rigorous, well-established process” and candidates are assessed to “ensure Canada is represented by exceptional leaders around the world.”
The sources told The Globe that Mr. Cauchon wants the job and is considered one of the leading candidates, particularly because of his extensive business ties to China. As vice-chair of the Canada China Business Council, he has developed relationships with leading figures in China.
The Globe is not naming the sources, who were not authorized to discuss the ambassadorial appointment process. Mr. Cauchon had no comment when reached by The Globe.
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Mr. Cauchon was spotted in late July having lunch in Ottawa with Jennifer May, the former ambassador to China, who is now foreign and defence policy adviser to the Prime Minister. Ms. May, a career diplomat, was the first woman to serve as Canada’s ambassador to China, one of the country’s most important diplomatic missions after Washington.
The government is expected to name a new ambassador to China in the coming weeks. Media in China and Hong Kong have said that President Xi Jinping might visit Ottawa in September, alongside a planned trip to Washington for a high-level summit with U.S. President Donald Trump. It would be the first time a Chinese head of state has visited Canada in about 16 years.
If the Prime Minister selects someone other than a career diplomat as his next envoy to Beijing, it will be a return to a practice employed by former prime minister Justin Trudeau.
He appointed former Liberal cabinet minister John McCallum as his first ambassador, only to fire him when Mr. McCallum publicly argued that the U.S. extradition request for Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou was seriously flawed. Ms. Meng’s arrest in Vancouver in December, 2018, led to China detaining two Canadians on trumped-up espionage charges and imposing sanctions on Canadian agriculture products.
All three were released as part of a U.S.-China deal in 2021.
Dominic Barton, who succeeded Mr. McCallum in September, 2019, also came from outside the foreign service. He was formerly the global managing partner of McKinsey & Company, a business consultancy.
In January, Mr. Carney travelled to Beijing to forge what he called a new strategic partnership with China. As part of the deal, Mr. Carney agreed to import up to 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles in 2026, a number that will rise annually over five years, in exchange for Beijing reducing punishing tariffs on Canadian canola, seafood and peas.
In May, Wang Yi visited Ottawa, marking the first visit to Canada by a Chinese foreign minister in a decade.
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Guy Saint-Jacques, a retired career diplomat who once served as Canada’s ambassador to China, said he has been told that Beijing has requested Mr. Carney appoint a politically connected envoy rather than a foreign-service officer, on the grounds that the Chinese want to be accorded the same high-powered representation that Ottawa dispatched to the United States.
Mr. Carney’s envoy to Washington, Mark Wiseman, is a close friend of the Prime Minister and, as a financier, has good business connections in the United States.
Mr. Saint-Jacques said that, in his opinion, it would be a mistake to select an ambassador from outside the foreign service for China, given the threats to Canada identified in the public inquiry into foreign interference in federal elections and democratic institutions. The inquiry, overseen by Justice Marie-Josée Hogue, focused on China and other foreign actors. It issued a final report early in 2025.
“It’s more difficult to fool an experienced diplomat than a political appointee, and it’s important to have someone there who speaks the language, understands the culture, understands the mentality,” Mr. Saint-Jacques said.
The former diplomat named two people at Global Affairs – Weldon Epp, currently an assistant deputy minister responsible for the Indo-Pacific region, and Cindy Termorshuizen, currently deputy minister of international development – as viable options for ambassador because of their experience in China. He said they both speak Chinese.
“You need someone who is objective and able to speak truth to power,” he said. Political appointees “want to be nice and they don’t want to ruffle feathers.”
He said a career diplomat would “reassure Canadians that, yes, we are willing to do more business with China, but we won’t let them threaten our sovereignty and security.”
Vina Nadjibulla, CEO of the Centre for Strategic Statecraft, a new Canadian foreign policy think tank, said the selection of the next ambassador to China will be extremely consequential as Mr. Carney seeks to recalibrate Canada’s relationship with Beijing while managing “significant economic, security and values-based differences.”
Ms. Nadjibulla cautioned against framing the decision simply as a choice between a career diplomat and a political appointee.
She said what matters is finding someone who has the confidence and ear of Mr. Carney, as well as deft diplomatic skills, sound political judgment and a sophisticated understanding of China.
“Given how personally involved Carney has been in recalibrating the relationship, the ambassador must be able to communicate directly with him and translate the government’s strategic direction into effective diplomacy.”
Mr. Carney faces a tricky dilemma as he seeks rapprochement with China. There will be domestic voices raised against deeper ties with China because its President has used trade to punish countries. Beijing has done so in recent decades, with targets ranging from Canada, Australia and Japan to South Korea, Lithuania, the Philippines and Norway.
China, India among countries active in foreign interference and spying in Canada, CSIS says
Beijing has also been accused, through the public inquiry and by Canada’s spy agency, of harassing diaspora communities and stealing this country’s technology.
Canada has since put in place significant safeguards, including expanded national-security reviews for foreign investments. The reviews focus on 11 sensitive technology sectors. Ottawa also banned federal research funding for universities co-operating with Chinese military institutions.
As a result of the public inquiry, the government also set up a mandatory registry for people undertaking “influence activity” on behalf of foreign powers and gave Canada’s top spy agency more authority to combat threats.
The changes were largely a result of months of reporting by The Globe and other media on Chinese foreign interference and disinformation campaigns, drawing on confidential national-security sources and leaked secret documents.