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It’s not often that folksy advice, suited to motivational posters or the sides of coffee mugs, has geopolitical applications. But words spoken by the late U.S. civil rights activist and writer Maya Angelou should be ringing loudly in the ears of the Canadian foreign-policy establishment: “When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.”

This is a lesson that seems to elude those Canadian officials tasked with overseeing our relations with China. The Beijing regime has never been our friend. They are brutal authoritarians who are operating probably the most oppressive regime in the world today (and certainly the most repressive by scale). Late last year, infuriated over Canada’s decision to arrest Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou, after a lawful extradition request by the United States, China first demanded her release, then arrested two Canadian citizens, alleging espionage. This was at the time, and remains, a transparent attempt by China to ramp up the pressure on Canada, even if only to express its anger.