Baku vs Ottawa: Does Canada feel the same about separatism in Quebec as in Garabagh?

Armenian media reported with great enthusiasm that in September 2023 a Canadian embassy will open in Yerevan. The opening ceremony will be honoured by the presence of Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly.

The excitement in Armenian society about the upcoming visit of this lady is understandable - she is known for her sympathy for Armenians and fiercely sympathises with their problems. Some time ago, Joly even made provocative remarks about Azerbaijan, referring to Azerbaijan's internationally recognised Garabagh as "Artsakh".

As the Armenian National Committee of Canada noted at the time, Joly also raised the issue of the "Artsakh blockade" at a parliamentary session, stating that "Canada will continue to call on the Azerbaijani authorities to open the ‘Berdzor’ [Lachin] corridor and release all Armenian prisoners of war".

It should be noted that the Azerbaijani Network and the Azerbaijani Community of Canada condemned the statement of Foreign Minister Melanie Joly, stressing that "’Artsakh’ is an illegal separatist regime on the sovereign territory of Azerbaijan, not recognised by any country in the world, including Canada".

By the way, the intention of the Canadian authorities to open a full-fledged embassy in Armenia was discussed last fall at the meeting of the prime ministers of the two countries - Nikol Pashinyan and Justin Trudeau.

In general, two Canadian consulates are already functioning in Armenia, the second of which opened less than a year ago.

Of course, all these facts clearly demonstrate the openly pro-Armenian position of not only the Canadian foreign minister but also the leadership of the entire country. Despite the fact that formally official Ottawa supports the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and the inviolability of its borders, it has to be stated that the Canadian authorities systematically adhere to a more than biased policy towards Azerbaijan and Türkiye.

Suffice it to recall that Canada banned the supply of components for Turkish UAVs in October 2020, which then Foreign Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne explained by the fact that "Canada took such measures to stop violence and protect civilians".

There should be no doubt that by the term "civilians" the Canadian side means only Armenians and cares only about their fate. Azerbaijanis, who were regularly subjected to Armenian shelling in the border areas, were not taken into account.

In those days Ankara condemned the decision of the Canadian authorities, rightly considering the suspension of licenses for the export of defence technologies and weapons to Türkiye as a pretext in favour of Yerevan during the hostilities between the Azerbaijani and Armenian armies.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry said that "at the same time, Canada does not put any obstacles in the way of arms supplies to the countries actively involved in the conflict in Yemen, which is considered one of the bloodiest humanitarian dramas of our time".

Quite rightly, Ankara accused Canada of double standards and ignoring the fact of 30 years of Armenian occupation of Azerbaijani territories. The Canadian authorities were reminded that they did the same with regard to Türkiye during its anti-terrorist operation "Source of Peace" in northern Syria and called on the official Ottawa to abandon the policy of double standards. And this is just one example of Canada's clearly biased policy towards Turkic countries.

Given such facts as the murder of four Muslims in Canada in June 2021 and other manifestations of hostility on the basis of nationality, we can say that Islamophobia in this North American country is in full force.

So, there are real reasons to believe that Canada is projecting its negative attitude towards Türkiye through Azerbaijan, while supporting Armenia, including opening the first resident diplomatic mission in the South Caucasus in Yerevan.

At the same time, one should not forget the huge role of the influential Armenian Diaspora in Canada, which actively promotes Armenia's interests abroad. According to various data, 50 to 100 thousand Armenians live in Canada, and various Armenian unions and youth organisations are actively involved in the political life of the country. But does this give the Canadian authorities grounds to interfere in the internal affairs of a sovereign state?

And it is quite appropriate to ask how the federal government of Canada would react if its largest province, Quebec (where, incidentally, there are relevant sentiments), declared its right to self-determination. After all, it is no secret that one of the most sensitive topics in the internal political life of Canada is the factor of Quebec separatism.

Attempts of Quebec to obtain independence were made in the last century, and even, though unsuccessfully, several referendums were held in the province on this topic. It is curious why Canada, which so zealously opposes separatism on its own territory, openly supports the same narrative in another country. The answer is obvious - the same double standards that Azerbaijan has faced since Armenia seized its territories.

And by the way, for over 30 years, Ottawa has never once condemned Yerevan for aggression and violation of the rights of hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijanis, nor has it made any statements that could have influenced the negotiation process and supported the implementation of relevant UN Security Council resolutions.

 It is believed that this weighty argument alone gives Baku the right to condemn Canada's biased policy towards it, which clearly goes beyond international law and jeopardises the already fragile relations between Baku and Ottawa.