Saudia suspends Canada service

neomax · Wed Aug 08, 2018 2:30 am

You would think with the UAE just receiving an expanded bilateral last week, they wouldn't be so quick to turn around and stab Canada in the back so soon. Extremely shortsighted move by the UAE. After Canada did them a favor, they should've returned it and remained neutral instead of being so quick to support the Saudis. I think this is going to cost them and would definitely not be surprised to see Canada reverse the expanded bilateral and give their slots to QR. The Saudi move was stupid but the UAE was even stupider to follow.

anrec80 · Wed Aug 08, 2018 2:33 am

Flexbird wrote:
As as Canadian I raise a single eyebrow at this news and shrug. KSA is, at best, a low tier trading partner. Canada does more trade in three days with the US than with KSA in a year.

The biggest short term hurt will be in those Medical Residents who are paid to be trained by KSA. Hospitals are suddenly facing the crunch of not having enough doctors on call until the situation is rectified. By the time CaRMS (Canadian Resident Matching Service) matches residency positions again, this may be ameliorated but it is going to cost a lot more money. Those Saudi Arabian residents were being paid for by the KSA and were on top of the regular resident placements from what I understand.

It’s well past due that Canada finally figures out its healthcare. And these medical residents are by far not the biggest problem. But it’s by far more pleasant to tell someone else what to do.

worldranger · Wed Aug 08, 2018 3:36 am

This only damages the Saudis image....what little there is.

They are like kids playing in the diplomatic grown up world, cue eyes rollling and yawns in embassies throughout the globe

dz09 · Wed Aug 08, 2018 4:32 am

KLSMB wrote:
dz09 wrote:
The president made the right call by not getting involved. This is not our fight and we have nothing to gain by getting in the middle of the dispute. Frankly Canada made a bonehead decision by criticizing KSA. That country is going trough some deep changes and a genuine attempt to modernize their society. Canada's criticism is not helping. There may not be a lot of trade between the two countries but there is certainly a lot trade between KSA allies and Canada. If they all join in in the boycott then Canada will feel the effects.

The USA has nothing to gain by getting involved in the middle of this dispute....other than standing by it’s allies, and also standing up for freedom, liberty, and basic human rights as the most powerful country in the world. Trump is not afraid to criticize China, Iran, Mexico, and other “S-hole countries” (his words) that don’t adhere to American values. But not a negative peep about Saudis. His silence on the current Saudi-Canada situation clarifies that under Trump, the US foreign policy is 100% based on financial gain and nothing else at all. It’s pathetic.

"It is our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliance with any portion of the foreign world."

“The great rule of conduct for us, in regard to foreign nations, is, in extending our commercial relations, to have with them as little political connection as possible.” George Washington.

President Trum may be a believer of those principles!

santi319 · Wed Aug 08, 2018 5:09 am

I am so happy the world is starting to see countries like Saudi Arabia, or Israel for what they really are. No, you dont sanction Cuba and Iran and kiss Saudi and Israel’s behind, when they are practically the same. I expect more countries to be tougher on Saudis and what I call the most hypocritical country in the world (as it fights for the crown with Israel).

Good on Canada. They have a strong leadership.

Qatara340 · Wed Aug 08, 2018 5:25 am

EL-AL wrote:
If this crisis will escalate that air space will be blocked, All Saudi flights to the US will be affected. Saudi Arabia used this act against Qatar and for many years against Israel.

I dont think Canada will block airspace, the ICAO headquarters is in Montreal. Would be very awkward.

Canada is a progressive forward thinking country, I do hope it will stand up to this charade.

787Driver · Wed Aug 08, 2018 5:51 am

dz09 wrote:
The president made the right call by not getting involved. This is not our fight and we have nothing to gain by getting in the middle of the dispute. Frankly Canada made a bonehead decision by criticizing KSA. That country is going trough some deep changes and a genuine attempt to modernize their society. Canada's criticism is not helping. There may not be a lot of trade between the two countries but there is certainly a lot trade between KSA allies and Canada. If they all join in in the boycott then Canada will feel the effects.

lol so we in the west should be scared of speaking out the truth? Well guess what, we can also make an alliance against those third world places and they would be completely without influence on the global stage.

787Driver · Wed Aug 08, 2018 5:52 am

Thenoflyzone wrote:
Trudeau to do list.

1. Cut all bilateral relations with Saudi Arabia, including revoking landing rights and overflight rights to all Saudi airlines.
2. Cut all bilateral relations with countries that support Saudi Arabia, including the U.A.E. Revoke all landing rights and overflight rights of the airlines from these countries.
3 Tell the citizens of these countries living in Canada on work visas/student visas/etc that they have 30 days to return where they came from.
4. Pour yourself a glass of whisky, light up a cigar, and call it a good day at the office !!

And Canada's allies should do exactly the same.

Kevinflyer · Wed Aug 08, 2018 8:39 am

alaturka wrote:
Perfect news for TK.

Agreed,

This sounds like a good opportunity for TK, EK, and EY to pick up Haji traffic.

Of course compared to these airlines, I wonder if Saudia was even a serious player to begin with in terms of pilgrims?

TYCOON · Wed Aug 08, 2018 10:10 am

I would love to see Canada stick it to KSA. What a small unimportant little Kingdom it is!!! As for Canadian "interference" in domestic affairs, nothing wrong in defending universal human rights! All power to the Canadians for doing it. And no country on this planet in modern history has been more interventionist in domestic affairs of a number of countries than the USofA... including the current Trump administration.
One aspect I do find amusing is that technically the Head of State of Canada is Queen Elizabeth II... so is this a dispute between a King and a Queen?....Off with HIS head!!

oceanvikram · Wed Aug 08, 2018 11:43 am

Funny ... for once a government is interfering with it's country's airline and forcing it to drop a money losing route.

Saudi Arabia can think whatever they want. At the end of the day they are no geo political power. They can only bully a tiny country, Qatar, with aid of neighbouring tiny countries. They can only bully a major country, Iran, only when they can get help from the US and Israel (while plotting a religious war against the infidels and Jews.) They can only use their military against a militia (Yemen) and yet there is no end to that war.

Canada has a lot more to offer to the world than Saudi Arabia. It is Saudi's loss and it seems their sense of entitlement is distorting the reality of where they are in the world. Canada has a much superior education system hence you see Saudi students in Canada. You will see more Saudi students in one Canadian campus than the entire Canadian student population in the middle east.

Canadian's export food to Saudi Arabia! What does Saudi Export to Canada? Innocent Saudis who are concerned about humanity!

Don't worry Canada, students from China and India will easily replace the Saudi students.

To those travelling between Saudi Arabia and Canada, there are plenty of options that I am sure have far superior service than Saudia.

As for the US, they will not care. The current environment is such that the Trump administration is closer to the Saudis than the Canadians. Have there been an tariffs imposed on Saudi? The Trump administration has put tariffs on Canadian imports.

cougar15 · Wed Aug 08, 2018 1:18 pm

Suggest this one get´s moved to Non-Av.....

aemoreira1981 · Wed Aug 08, 2018 1:22 pm

Thenoflyzone wrote:
Trudeau to do list.

1. Cut all bilateral relations with Saudi Arabia, including revoking landing rights and overflight rights to all Saudi airlines.
2. Cut all bilateral relations with countries that support Saudi Arabia, including the U.A.E. Revoke all landing rights and overflight rights of the airlines from these countries.
3 Tell the citizens of these countries living in Canada on work visas/student visas/etc that they have 30 days to return where they came from.
4. Pour yourself a glass of whisky, light up a cigar, and call it a good day at the office !!

Trudeau may well end up isolating himself, as this should only be an issue between Canada and the KSA...no one else.

CaliguyNYC · Wed Aug 08, 2018 1:26 pm

I can't believe the UAE sided with KSA. Here is the issue, the UAE knows Canada won't do anything but KSA carries a BIG stick. This is the issue in global politics today. Some take an enlightened approach while others live in the 1800s. Let's see what Canada does. My guess is nothing.

bmacleod · Wed Aug 08, 2018 1:37 pm

Rbgso wrote:
I'm out of the loop, what's the issue between these two countries?

As silly as it may seem - a tweet by a Canadian government official criticizing human rights in the Saudi kingdom.

bmacleod · Wed Aug 08, 2018 1:42 pm

Thenoflyzone wrote:
Trudeau to do list.

2. Cut all bilateral relations with countries that support Saudi Arabia, including the U.A.E. Revoke all landing rights and overflight rights of the airlines from these countries.

UAE is too important to Canada to simply cut off. Won't happen.

whywhyzee · Wed Aug 08, 2018 3:02 pm

oceanvikram wrote:
Funny ... for once a government is interfering with it's country's airline and forcing it to drop a money losing route.

Saudi Arabia can think whatever they want. At the end of the day they are no geo political power. They can only bully a tiny country, Qatar, with aid of neighbouring tiny countries. They can only bully a major country, Iran, only when they can get help from the US and Israel (while plotting a religious war against the infidels and Jews.) They can only use their military against a militia (Yemen) and yet there is no end to that war.

Canada has a lot more to offer to the world than Saudi Arabia. It is Saudi's loss and it seems their sense of entitlement is distorting the reality of where they are in the world. Canada has a much superior education system hence you see Saudi students in Canada. You will see more Saudi students in one Canadian campus than the entire Canadian student population in the middle east.

Canadian's export food to Saudi Arabia! What does Saudi Export to Canada? Innocent Saudis who are concerned about humanity!

Don't worry Canada, students from China and India will easily replace the Saudi students.

To those travelling between Saudi Arabia and Canada, there are plenty of options that I am sure have far superior service than Saudia.

Just curious as to what makes you say the route was a money loser?

As for the US, they will not care. The current environment is such that the Trump administration is closer to the Saudis than the Canadians. Have there been an tariffs imposed on Saudi? The Trump administration has put tariffs on Canadian imports.

Just curious as to how you deduced this was a money losing route.

berari · Wed Aug 08, 2018 3:19 pm

oceanvikram wrote:
Canada has a lot more to offer to the world than Saudi Arabia. It is Saudi's loss and it seems their sense of entitlement is distorting the reality of where they are in the world. Canada has a much superior education system hence you see Saudi students in Canada. You will see more Saudi students in one Canadian campus than the entire Canadian student population in the middle east.

Neither country greatly benefits from each other. While it's not a huge big loss for Canada (we know KSA can get everything elsewhere) it shuts it out from opportunities related to Saudi's development goals which are expected to be huge. There'll be no impact, and KSA can afford to make such moves.

golfradio · Wed Aug 08, 2018 5:18 pm

bmacleod wrote:
Thenoflyzone wrote:
Trudeau to do list.

2. Cut all bilateral relations with countries that support Saudi Arabia, including the U.A.E. Revoke all landing rights and overflight rights of the airlines from these countries.

UAE is too important to Canada to simply cut off. Won't happen.

Remind me why UAE is too important? We don't need to have our military bases in UAE. We have no need for their airlines, we don't import crude from them, their total investments in Canada are less than CAD 10 billion, they are only our 16th biggest export market. I agree with Thenoflyzone, deliver a swift kick to the rear to both these regimes.

ElPistolero · Wed Aug 08, 2018 6:40 pm

golfradio wrote:
bmacleod wrote:
Thenoflyzone wrote:
Trudeau to do list.

2. Cut all bilateral relations with countries that support Saudi Arabia, including the U.A.E. Revoke all landing rights and overflight rights of the airlines from these countries.

UAE is too important to Canada to simply cut off. Won't happen.

Remind me why UAE is too important? We don't need to have our military bases in UAE. We have no need for their airlines, we don't import crude from them, their total investments in Canada are less than CAD 10 billion, they are only our 16th biggest export market. I agree with Thenoflyzone, deliver a swift kick to the rear to both these regimes.

Doesn't make much sense viewing these Gulf countries in isolation. Their ability and willingness to pump money into other countries (through remittances or otherwise) give them disproportionate influence in the OIC/GCC/Arab League, North Africa/South/Southeast Asia etc.

PerfectGriffin · Wed Aug 08, 2018 7:32 pm

Well to be fair, although the trade is not significant now, the opportunity for more business for Canadian companies is there since the Kingdom is planning to spend billions building new mega-cities. Having said that, the KSA government has previously announced plans for new mega cities (e.g King Abdullah City) and nothing has really come about it. Given this track record, I really doubt the NEOM city they announced will ever reach the size they envisioned. I mean, KSA is not an untapped market that foreign companies are rushing to do business in, and neither is it very cheap or have a highly skilled labor force. Its going to be difficult for the Saudis to attract business to the Kingdom without huge initiatives from the government, and even then, these types of shenanigans by the Kings make foreign companies think twice before moving to what looks like an unstable place.

QuarkFly · Wed Aug 08, 2018 7:46 pm

Screw Saudi Arabia...Canada (and everybody else) should tell them to drop dead. The US, Europe, should stand by Canada, not the feudal theocrats...ban their flights too. In N. America, due to fracking, we don't need Saudi oil, the US is really not a net importer of oil any more, Canada also obviously does not need it -- and we can produce far more natural gas than we need. This is making the Persian gulf region somewhat of a backwater...except for party time in Dubai (no nudity please !!)

At least as many sanctions should be on Saudi Arabia as Iran...Want to go to the Haj? Sorry, do some connecting flights !! I hope Canada does not back down...tell the theocrats, and Saudia...to get lost !!

berari · Wed Aug 08, 2018 8:41 pm

xwb777 wrote:
Canada to seek UAE andUK help to diffuse the tension. Let's hope things will improve for the sake of aviation.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saud ... ssion=true

Both the US and UK made statements about how it is for Canada and KSA to resolve this in a diplomatic manner. The UK went on to say:

"The U.K. is a strong supporter of human rights. We regularly raise our concerns with the Saudi government about human rights issues, including the recent arrests of human rights defenders," the spokeswoman said.

I think the issue here is not raising a human rights issue, because I don't believe that even the US and the UK sit back and let everything that happens around the world happen. What they do, however, is follow diplomatic protocols to deliver their messages. The tweet by the Canadian official amounted to public shaming, if you will, and is not well received by the targets. For the Canadian Government however, once the tweet went out, there's no going back for risk of being labeled many things by its own people.

ATA L1011 · Wed Aug 08, 2018 8:43 pm

Thenoflyzone wrote:
Trudeau to do list.

1. Cut all bilateral relations with Saudi Arabia, including revoking landing rights and overflight rights to all Saudi airlines.
2. Cut all bilateral relations with countries that support Saudi Arabia, including the U.A.E. Revoke all landing rights and overflight rights of the airlines from these countries.
3 Tell the citizens of these countries living in Canada on work visas/student visas/etc that they have 30 days to return where they came from.
4. Pour yourself a glass of whisky, light up a cigar, and call it a good day at the office !!

Well said

!!

multimark · Wed Aug 08, 2018 8:50 pm

LockheedBBD wrote:
xwb777 wrote:
Canada to seek UAE andUK help to diffuse the tension. Let's hope things will improve for the sake of aviation.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saud ... ssion=true

Good luck to Canada, but they're silly if they think that the UAE will help. UAE officials have already released a statement in support of Saudi Arabia against Canada. The UAE has also encouraged other gulf states and countries like Pakistan to join against Canada in support.

In which case Canada should revoke EK's bilateral rights to fly to Canada. It's one thing to say nothing, another to actively campaign against a country.

LAXdude1023 · Wed Aug 08, 2018 9:31 pm

multimark wrote:
LockheedBBD wrote:
xwb777 wrote:
Canada to seek UAE andUK help to diffuse the tension. Let's hope things will improve for the sake of aviation.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-saud ... ssion=true

Good luck to Canada, but they're silly if they think that the UAE will help. UAE officials have already released a statement in support of Saudi Arabia against Canada. The UAE has also encouraged other gulf states and countries like Pakistan to join against Canada in support.

In which case Canada should revoke EK's bilateral rights to fly to Canada. It's one thing to say nothing, another to actively campaign against a country.

And thats the trump card! Canada could easily screw the gulf countries on an aviation level if they close off their airspace to them.

limeyptwo · Wed Aug 08, 2018 9:42 pm

Does AC have a service there?

kalvado · Wed Aug 08, 2018 10:21 pm

I wonder how much of Canada's CAD$1.8 trillion public debt is held in a gulf....

Cunard · Wed Aug 08, 2018 10:37 pm

kalvado wrote:
I wonder how much of Canada's CAD$1.8 trillion public debt is held in a gulf....

''Held in a gulf'' I guess that your referring to a Gulf state which there are several!

SCQ83 · Wed Aug 08, 2018 11:03 pm

Aren't there dozens of thousands of Canadian citizens (*) living in Saudi Arabia and UAE? Couldn't this affect them?. I remember reading somewhere there are more Canadians than Americans living in those countries despite the difference in population.

(*): Lebanese, Indians, etc who got a Canadian passport and then returned to the GCC to work.

santi319 wrote:
I am so happy the world is starting to see countries like Saudi Arabia, or Israel for what they really are. No, you dont sanction Cuba and Iran and kiss Saudi and Israel’s behind, when they are practically the same. I expect more countries to be tougher on Saudis and what I call the most hypocritical country in the world (as it fights for the crown with Israel)

Saudi and Israel are well-developed market economies; Iran and Cuba are not. Naturally the US supports Israel and Saudi as guarantors of the free market.

aerolimani · Wed Aug 08, 2018 11:48 pm

dz09 wrote:
Canada, despite its big land mass has only about 30million people. It is not that significant of a country in the world stage and so it should refrain itself from pretending it is a significant power in the world.

Canada is a member of the G7 and G20, and it is 11th largest economy in the world by nominal GDP. It is an exporter of US$76 billion in fossil fuels to the USA alone. And, despite what Trump wants you to believe, Canada is considered a very reliable trading partner, and a safe, uncorrupt place to do business. Canada may be relatively few in people, but it has a stable government and plentiful natural resources. These aspects allow Canada to punch well above its weight. You don't have to like Canada, but the truth is that Canada is not a bit player on the world scene. Sorry, not sorry.

iamlucky13 · Wed Aug 08, 2018 11:59 pm

LockheedBBD wrote:
eamondzhang wrote:
iamlucky13 wrote:

This isn't new. The US has a long history of varying responses to civil rights concerns in Saudi Arabia. I only looked back 20 years for a couple samples, but it goes on longer:
https://www.theatlantic.com/internation ... ss/478689/
https://www.nytimes.com/1993/08/23/worl ... audis.html

And it is completely normal (to some degree even understandable) for politicians to change their tone towards nations like Saudi Arabia depending on the context and how it serves them. Characteristically, President Trump has in the past been more dramatic about it than his predecessors:
http://time.com/4785714/donald-trump-saudi-arabia/

Some of the dealings of various presidents with Saudi Arabia have been more substantial than others:
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa- ... SKCN11D2JQ

So true, and same goes for UAE/Bahrain/etc.

However just as some others said, I'm not expecting a response from the USA at all; Trump is and will lick their eggs.

Michael

Why anyone would expect a US response is beyond me. When was the last time Trump rallied for social justice or human rights?

According to the third link in the text you quoted, at least as late as June 2016.

Hence in part why I made sure to note that politicians often change their tone towards Saudi Arabia (among other topics politicians collectively can be trusted to flip flop on).

KLSMB · Thu Aug 09, 2018 12:45 am

Yesteday, the Saudi government beheaded and crucified a man after he was convicted of murder and theft - a punishment that was endorsed by the Saudi king. That is just about as barbaric of a punishment as you can get. And they did it while simultaneously imposing sanctions on Canada for calling them out for human rights abuses. Unbelievable.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles ... rder-theft

How bad does it have to get before the world demands a stop to this disgusting behaviour from the Saudis? I find it alarming that Canada is the sole country in the world willing to take a stand and make it's concerns known publicly. How did it come to be that the rest of the world is so preoccupied with money and oil that the basic rights of our fellow human beings are not even worth speaking out for anymore?

The Saudis are now using Canada as a whipping boy to show the rest of the world what will happen if a country even thinks about criticizing anything that Saudi Arabia does. Trump, May, Macron, Merkle, and the rest of the western world leaders sure like to pretend that they care about freedom, democracy, and human rights (or whatever other talking points will get them elected). But we all can see now that when it really comes down to it, they just sit back, stay silent, and do nothing. I'm extremely proud of Canada for continuing to stand up to the Saudi ridiculousness, even if they are left to do it on their own.

VTKillarney · Thu Aug 09, 2018 12:50 am

The right and left want the oil and the left will defend the worst parts of Islam just because they see their position as being contrary to the right.

And thus nothing happens.

dz09 · Thu Aug 09, 2018 12:59 am

KLSMB wrote:
Yesteday, the Saudi government beheaded and crucified a man after he was convicted of murder and theft - a punishment that was endorsed by the Saudi king. That is just about as barbaric of a punishment as you can get. And they did it while simultaneously imposing sanctions on Canada for calling them out for human rights abuses. Unbelievable.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles ... rder-theft

How bad does it have to get before the world demands a stop to this disgusting behaviour from the Saudis? I find it alarming that Canada is the sole country in the world willing to take a stand and make it's concerns known publicly. How did it come to be that the rest of the world is so preoccupied with money and oil that the basic rights of our fellow human beings are not even worth speaking out for anymore?

The Saudis are now using Canada as a whipping boy to show the rest of the world what will happen if a country even thinks about criticizing anything that Saudi Arabia does. Trump, May, Macron, Merkle, and the rest of the western world leaders sure like to pretend that they care about freedom, democracy, and human rights (or whatever other talking points will get them elected). But we all can see now that when it really comes down to it, they just sit back, stay silent, and do nothing. I'm extremely proud of Canada for continuing to stand up to the Saudi ridiculousness, even if they are left to do it on their own.

Ask the victim's family how barbaric the punishment is?

TYCOON · Thu Aug 09, 2018 4:58 am

One of the most naive comments I have seen on this site in years...

Saudi and Israel are well-developed market economies; Iran and Cuba are not. Naturally the US supports Israel and Saudi as guarantors of the free market.[/quote]

aerolimani · Thu Aug 09, 2018 4:29 pm

The KSA is not even taking this thing particularly seriously.

They claim to be selling off their shares in Canadian businesses. • Big deal.

They’re not going to import any Canadian wheat or barley. • They already weren’t buying any.

They haven’t said anything about cancelling their $1.5 billion order for light armoured vehicles. • I guess that would put to much of a dent in their Yemen activities.

They’re not going to stop selling oil to Canada. • I guess they’re not willing to take the economic hit.

santi319 · Fri Aug 10, 2018 5:38 am

[code][/code]

TYCOON wrote:
One of the most naive comments I have seen on this site in years...

Saudi and Israel are well-developed market economies; Iran and Cuba are not. Naturally the US supports Israel and Saudi as guarantors of the free market.

[/quote]

I know its almost like you dont know if it was meant as a joke or not..

dtw9 · Fri Aug 10, 2018 11:24 am

Again. Another thread turned into a Trump USA debate. Most of the comments here have nothing to do with the matter at hand which is a dispute between Canada and Saudi Arabia. No other country has spoken out in support of Canada but yet you expect the U S to. Moderators please LOCK it l!!!

artofzen · Fri Aug 10, 2018 3:30 pm

dtw9 wrote:
No other country has spoken out in support of Canada.

The silence is really telling, only Amnesty International is behind Canada.

dtw9 wrote:
Again. Another thread turned into a Trump USA debate. Most of the comments here have nothing to do with the matter at hand which is a dispute between Canada and Saudi Arabia.

I had suggested deletion of some off topic posts but they werent removed, trying it again.

aerolimani · Fri Aug 10, 2018 3:45 pm

The moderators’ solution to the off-topic nature of this thread was to move it to non-aviation. Personally, I think that was an appropriate move. This story is a political one. The aviation aspect is merely one small side consequence.

“Saudia cancelled all flights to Canada.”
“Oh? Why did they do that?”
“Political reasons.”

And that’s where the aviation story ends.

artofzen · Fri Aug 10, 2018 3:52 pm

Yes, but then it went onto U.S/Canada dealings.

limeyptwo wrote:
Does AC have a service there?

Maybe codeshare on Lufthansa.

Pellegrine · Sat Aug 11, 2018 4:04 pm

aerolimani wrote:
They’re not going to stop selling oil to Canada. • I guess they’re not willing to take the economic hit.

Canada doesn't even need Saudi crude.

aerolimani · Sat Aug 11, 2018 4:50 pm

Pellegrine wrote:
aerolimani wrote:
They’re not going to stop selling oil to Canada. • I guess they’re not willing to take the economic hit.

Canada doesn't even need Saudi crude.

It’s true. But, the BC and Quebec NIMBY crowds are anti-oil sands and anti-pipeline. Instead, it would seem they prefer to get their oil from Saudia Arabia and such places. Hard to believe, really.

artofzen · Sat Aug 11, 2018 10:24 pm

Canada has no friends https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/ ... support-us

aerolimani · Sat Aug 11, 2018 11:40 pm

artofzen wrote:
Canada has no friends https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/ ... support-us

Everyone who actually experienced WWII is now long gone from power, and the current governments are slowly undoing all the anti-isolationist work that was done in the decades after WWII. The world is reverting to isolationist, nationalistic policies, and it will be our undoing.

ElPistolero · Tue Aug 14, 2018 4:44 pm

As weird interventions go, this one takes the cake:

"As Canada’s relationship with Saudi Arabia remains on the rocks, ex-foreign affairs minister John Baird appeared on Saudi state TV over the weekend to denounce the Trudeau government for its “gratuitous attack” on the Saudi regime."

https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/th ... i-state-tv

Quite the change from eight years ago:

"Former transport minister John Baird - now the powerful Government House leader - made the case around the cabinet table, persuading Prime Minister Stephen Harper to deny extra landing slots in Canada to airlines from the United Arab Emirates, according to a source."

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/po ... le4328818/

aerolimani · Tue Aug 14, 2018 11:00 pm

ElPistolero wrote:
As weird interventions go, this one takes the cake:

"As Canada’s relationship with Saudi Arabia remains on the rocks, ex-foreign affairs minister John Baird appeared on Saudi state TV over the weekend to denounce the Trudeau government for its “gratuitous attack” on the Saudi regime."

https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/th ... i-state-tv

Quite the change from eight years ago:

"Former transport minister John Baird - now the powerful Government House leader - made the case around the cabinet table, persuading Prime Minister Stephen Harper to deny extra landing slots in Canada to airlines from the United Arab Emirates, according to a source."

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/po ... le4328818/

Let's face it. Politics has become a team sport. The Liberals are in power, therefore for some conservatives, everything the liberals do is wrong. Either that, or Baird is VERY deep in the Saudi's pockets.

Even more ridiculous, three years ago, Baird was tweeting critically about Saudia Arabia. He is a hypocrite in the extreme. https://twitter.com/Baird/status/555542358251827200

Canada is deeply concerned by flogging of @raif_badawi - it is a violation of human dignity and freedom of expression http://t.co/jrjTc3qYMc

LockheedBBD · Wed Aug 15, 2018 1:03 am

Since this thread is about Saudia.....

Last Saudia takeoff from Toronto Canada (YYZ) to Jeddah Saudi Arabia (JED): https://youtu.be/IKaXrHgWl7M?t=2m31s

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