Opinion: Canada cannot trade away the danger of a Russia-China alliance

A photo of a smiling Prime Minister Mark Carney shaking hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping is seen on the cover of the China Daily newspaper as a reader thumbs through the pages in Beijing on Jan. 17, 2026. Photo by Sean Kilpatrick / The Canadian Press

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Canada’s debates about Russia, China and national security often remain trapped between two false assumptions.

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The first is that Ukraine is too distant to matter and that helping defend it against Russia is an act of charity. The second is that renewed engagement with China will strengthen Canada’s economy against U.S. tariffs and reshoring without creating new risks.

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Together, these assumptions ignore how closely national security and trade are connected, especially when Canada’s economic choices intersect with the Russia-China strategic alignment.

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In January, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced a strategic partnership with Beijing, arguing closer economic ties can diversify Canada’s trade. But Canada cannot simply treat China as a market while ignoring Beijing’s support for Russia’s war against Ukraine and the growing military and technological co-operation between the two regimes.

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Ukraine is not a distant conflict for Canada. It is the central battlefield in Moscow’s campaign to overturn Europe’s security order and a testing ground for threats Canada may face in the Arctic, cyberspace, space and through information warfare.

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Recent reporting by The Insider, Le Monde and Der Spiegel describes how Beijing is helping sustain Russia’s war and military-industrial base while gaining access to battlefield experience that strengthens the capabilities of both countries.

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Chinese exports of dual-use technology and components help Russia produce the weapons it needs. Russia is providing Beijing with lessons in drone warfare, electronic warfare, cyberattacks, sanctions evasion and the disruption of critical infrastructure. These capabilities will not likely remain confined to Ukraine. They will likely inform Chinese and Russian planning against NATO, North America and the Arctic.

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Canada’s allies have already drawn the same connection. Canada’s G7 partners have warned that China’s support is helping fuel Russia’s war, while NATO has identified China as a “decisive enabler” of Moscow’s aggression.

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According to reports, Russian and Chinese officials have formally discussed co-operation to develop weapons and hybrid-warfare capabilities designed to evade Western defences and disrupt satellite communications.

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One example is a proposed method for disabling Western satellite systems such as Starlink, which has played an important role in Ukraine’s defence. Disabling satellites could disrupt military operations, emergency services and civilian communications, while debris from their destruction could threaten other objects in orbit.

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For Canada, that threat is inseparable from Arctic security.

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Satellite communications are essential across the Canadian Arctic. During a military confrontation, climate-related crisis or security emergency, those systems would be vital to Northern communities, emergency responders and Canadian Armed Forces.