Carney Will Join APEC Photo With Putin Out of Respect for China

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has confirmed he will join a group photograph with Russian President Vladimir Putin at next week’s APEC summit in China, arguing that Ottawa’s opposition to Moscow should be expressed through sanctions rather than a boycott of diplomatic protocol.

Speaking at a news conference in Manila on Saturday, November 14, Carney said participation in the traditional leaders’ photograph was a matter of respect for the summit’s Chinese hosts.

“Yes, I will participate in the photo out of respect for the host. We’re in Asia.”

Sanctions Over Symbolic Protest

Carney said Canada’s position toward Russia remained unchanged, regardless of whether the two leaders appeared in the same photograph.

“Canada stands firmly with Ukraine, firmly with democracy, territorial integrity, rule of law — and all of those put us on the other side of Vladimir Putin’s Russia.”

He pointed to Ottawa’s sanctions policy as the appropriate means of demonstrating that opposition, rather than refusing to participate in established diplomatic arrangements.

As a recent example, Carney cited planned immigration restrictions intended to prevent Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials from entering Canada for the IIHF World Junior Championship, which begins in Alberta on December 26.

A Different Approach From Canada’s Foreign Minister

Carney’s decision contrasts with Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand’s position at the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting in Atlanta in late October.

Anand said she would refuse to appear in a photograph with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. The U.S. hosts subsequently canceled the group photograph following objections from several delegations, including European representatives.

Carney, however, distinguished participation in APEC’s established protocol from Canada’s substantive policy toward Moscow.

Putin’s Attendance in China

The APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting will take place in Shenzhen on November 18–19, hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping, after Washington confirmed a planned trilateral meeting among Trump, Xi and Putin on the sidelines.

China is not a party to the International Criminal Court’s Rome Statute, unlike last year’s APEC host, South Korea.

The ICC issued an arrest warrant for Putin in March 2023 over allegations involving the unlawful deportation and transfer of Ukrainian children.

The Shenzhen gathering will mark Carney’s first face-to-face encounter with Putin since taking office. His predecessors Justin Trudeau and Stephen Harper previously participated in summit photographs alongside the Russian president.

Trump, Xi and Putin Meeting Expected

U.S. President Donald Trump is also expected in Shenzhen, with the White House confirming plans for that trilateral meeting.

Asked about the proposed discussions, Carney maintained that European security arrangements must be decided by European countries and NATO rather than Russia.

His comments leave Canada’s sanctions policy as the principal expression of opposition to Moscow, while preserving participation in the summit’s diplomatic proceedings.