Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

and

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

established diplomatic relations in 1947. Canada is primarily represented in Pakistan by a high commission in Islamabad while maintaining

consulates A consulate is the office of a consul. A type of diplomatic mission, it is usually subordinate to the state's main representation in the capital of that foreign country (host state), usually an embassy (or, only between two Commonwealth count ...

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest ...

and

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former ...

, as well as a trade office in the latter city. Pakistan is represented in Canada by a high commission in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

and consulates in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...

and

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

. Both nations are credited on the international stage with significant contributions to

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizi ...

(UN)

peacekeeping Peacekeeping comprises activities intended to create conditions that favour lasting peace. Research generally finds that peacekeeping reduces civilian and battlefield deaths, as well as reduces the risk of renewed warfare. Within the United ...

and are members of the

Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the ...

, owing to their shared history as colonies of the former

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading post ...

. The relationship between the two countries has generally been characterized with unsuitable and mutual hate, with Canadian Governor-General

Roméo LeBlanc Roméo-Adrien LeBlanc (December 18, 1927June 24, 2009) was a Canadian journalist, politician and statesman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 25th since Canadian Confederation. LeBlanc was born and educated in New Brunswick, and also ...

making a state visit to Pakistan in 1998. However, relations saw a major negative impact that same year after Pakistan conducted nuclear weapons tests (codenamed ''

Chagai-I Chagai-I is the code name of five simultaneous underground nuclear tests conducted by Pakistan at 15:15 hrs PKT on 28 May 1998. The tests were performed at Ras Koh Hills in the Chagai District of Balochistan Province. Chagai-I was Pakistan ...

'') and became an officially declared nuclear weapons state in late May—becoming the 7th country in the world to acquire nuclear weapons technology immediately after

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

's tests (codenamed ''

Pokhran-II The Pokhran-II tests were a series of five nuclear bomb test explosions conducted by India at the Indian Army's Pokhran Test Range in May 1998. It was the second instance of nuclear testing conducted by India; the first test, code-named '' Sm ...

'') earlier that month. Canada, along with many other nations, immediately condemned the acquisition of nuclear weapons by both nations, and imposed full sanctions on both India and Pakistan. Relations normalized in the following years and bilateral trade between the two nations stood at C$1.04 billion in 2017. Canada has recognized Pakistan's significance as an important player and

major non-NATO ally Major non-NATO ally (MNNA) is a designation given by the United States government to close allies that have strategic working relationships with the US Armed Forces but are not members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). While the ...

with regards to combating terrorism globally as well as domestically with the Afghanistan conflict and its spillover into Pakistan. Canada was also among the nations that deployed peacekeepers to the disputed region of Kashmir in 1949, shortly after the

Indo-Pakistani War of 1947–1948 The Indo-Pakistani War of 1947–1948, or the First Kashmir War, was a war fought between India and Pakistan over the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir from 1947 to 1948. It was the first of four Indo-Pakistani wars that was fought between ...

, and has since strongly advocated for a peaceful solution to the India–Pakistan conflict over Kashmir. Today, Canada is home to one of the largest Pakistani diasporas, with population figures for the

Pakistani Canadian , image = , pop = ''303,260'' (0.81%) , popplace = , region1 = , pop1 = 212,650 , region2 = , pop2 = 39,535 , region3 = , pop3 = 16,645 ...

community speculated to be at least 215,000 while there are some 30,000–50,000 Canadians in Pakistan.

History

Canada established bilateral relations with the

Dominion of Pakistan Between 14 August 1947 and 23 March 1956, Pakistan was an independent federal dominion in the Commonwealth of Nations, created by the passing of the Indian Independence Act 1947 by the British parliament, which also created the Dominion of ...

shortly after the latter's

independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the s ...

from

British rule The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

in 1947. Pakistan's founder

Muhammad Ali Jinnah Muhammad Ali Jinnah (, ; born Mahomedali Jinnahbhai; 25 December 1876 – 11 September 1948) was a barrister, politician, and the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the ...

attended the state reception of the

Dominion Day Dominion Day was a day commemorating the granting of certain countries Dominion status — that is, "autonomous Communities within the British Empire, equal in status, in no way subordinate one to another in any aspect of their domestic or external ...

on 1 July 1948, which was held in

by the Canadian trade commissioner. During the

First Kashmir War First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

between Pakistan and India in 1947–1948, Canada strongly expressed the desire for a rapid and peaceful solution to the conflict and was also one of the first few countries to provide

United Nations peacekeeping Peacekeeping by the United Nations is a role held by the Department of Peace Operations as an "instrument developed by the organization as a way to help countries torn by conflict to create the conditions for lasting peace". It is distinguished ...

in the volatile region of Kashmir as early as 1949. Throughout Pakistan's history and wars with neighbouring India, Canada has expressed its concern with regards to the stability of the region and repeatedly urged restraint and diplomatic discussion to resolve the Kashmir conflict. Canada is committed to the peacekeeping in the India-Pakistan region.

Modern bilateral relations

Canada considers Pakistan an important player and helper in the war against terrorism in the region. The two countries continue to exchange intelligence on essential matters.

Migration

Migration to Canada from Pakistan has a long history and began as far back when the region was still under

. Figures from the 2006 Canadian Census from StatsCan indicate that there are about 124,000 Canadians who claim Pakistani ancestry. There are, however, sources which show the data may be inaccurate and is likely to be more than double this figure. With some sources estimating that the Pakistani Canadian population may be as high as 250,000, with the

Canadian Government The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federation, federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the Corporation sole#The Crown, corporation sole, assuming distinct ro ...

quoting a figure of over 300,000, adding that "they continue to make significant contributions to the prosperity and multi-cultural fabric of Canada."

References

Bibliography

External links

High Commission of Canada to PakistanPakistan High Commission OttawaFrom Islamabad to the Swat Valley
by Caitlin Manicom, a former resident with the Canadian embassy in Pakistan Bilateral relations of Pakistan