CANADA
Canada’s Trudeau suggests China uses slave labor in lithium production
Niken Stewart1 hour ago
By Doina Chiacu
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau suggested on Friday that China uses slave labor to produce lithium as he discussed Canada’s efforts to ramp up production of the critical metal used in electric vehicles and other batteries.
Canada last fall announced tougher policies on investments in critical minerals – particularly from the dominant producer China – as it worked to prop up its domestic supply of critical minerals after the global pandemic uncovered supply chain problems that were becoming significant had led to production interruptions.
Canada has significant sources of lithium, Trudeau said. However, China has made strategic choices over the decades that have made it by far the world’s largest producer of lithium, which is used in cellphones and electric vehicles, he added in a speech to the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.
“If we’re being honest…the lithium produced in Canada is going to be more expensive because we don’t use slave labor,” Trudeau said.
“Because we put forward environmental responsibility as something we actually expect to be upheld. Because we count on working in partnership with tribal peoples, paying their living wages and expecting safety standards.”
A representative at the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Diplomatic tensions between Canada and China have run high since the arrest of Huawei Technologies executive Meng Wanzhou in 2018 and the subsequent arrest by Beijing of two Canadians on espionage charges.
In November, Canada ordered three Chinese companies to divest their investments in Canadian critical minerals, citing national security. In response, China accused Ottawa of using national security as a pretext and said the divestment order violated international trade and market rules.
US President Joe Biden and Trudeau presented a united front against authoritarian regimes last month when Biden visited the Canadian capital, days after leaders of China and Russia held a summit in Moscow.
(Reporting by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
Source
Tagged: canada
