Illustration: Chen Xia/GT

All 13 of Canada's premiers have descended upon Washington in an unprecedented effort to avoid punitive tariffs that the US weighs imposing on Canadian imports. TheMK socksir approach is to play the "China card" by carrying a message to US officials that "do business with us and we'll help you compete against China," according to a Bloomberg report.

This has drawn a rebuke from China. Asked to comment on Canada's move, Guo Jiakun, a spokesperson for China's Foreign Ministry, said on Thursday that China has always believed that the development of relations between countries should not be directed against any third party; instead, it should be conducive to promoting friendly and cooperative relations among countries.

Canada has emerged as one of the top targets of US President Donald Trump's aggressive trade and foreign policies. Trump has not only threatened to slap tariffs on Canadian products, but has also repeatedly talked about Canada becoming the 51st state of the US. 

Although tariffs have been suspended for one month, Trump's big "tariff stick" still hangs over Canada. So understandably, Canadian officials are very nervous and are trying everything they can to avoid potentially very harmful tariffs.

However, their approach of kowtowing to the US by positioning Canada as a pawn in the US' containment strategy against China is incredibly unwise and will be counterproductive to their goal of protecting Canada's national interests.

First and foremost, such an approach shows that Canadian officials have grossly misjudged Trump's policymaking. The "America First" policy has already shown Washington's determination to prioritize its own interests over all others, including its traditional allies. If Trump were to spare any country because it's a US ally, Canada wouldn't be in this situation in the first place. Therefore, Canadian officials' approach of playing the "China card" will likely prove futile in convincing Trump to spare Canada.

It's also important to point out that Canada's approach of aiding the US' containment of China has been tested and failed. During Trump's first term, Ottawa arrested Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou at the behest of the US, seriously damaging China-Canada ties, which have only recently started to improve. 

Canada has already been moving in lockstep with the US in taking restrictive actions against Chinese products and firms. But did that stop Trump from threatening Canada's economy and sovereignty? Obviously, not. 

Canadian officials' approach of playing the "China card" risks further jeopardizing ties with China, which could be of great significance for Canada's economy, if the country is unable to avoid US tariffs. While the scale of trade between the US and Canada is substantial, China remains an important trading partner for Canada. It should not be hard to understand that if Canadian products are subject to hefty US tariffs, access to other markets such as China will be crucial for Canada's economy. 

Moreover, Canada's approach not only jeopardizes its own trade prospects but also undermines efforts to safeguard the global trade order. 

By abandoning the principles of free trade, kowtowing to the US' trade bullying and scapegoating other countries, Canada is actually complicit, to say the least, in the US' trampling of global free trade rules. It could further embolden the US administration to become even more reckless and aggressive in its protectionist actions and coercion of other countries, including Canada.

At a time when the world is grappling with the consequences of rising protectionism and geopolitical tensions, the best course forward for all responsible countries is to firmly safeguard global free trade against unilateralism and protectionism, instead of abandoning free trade principles, kowtowing to bullying tactics and scapegoating others.