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OTTAWA — The federal government is defending its plan to start talks on an extradition treaty with the United Arab Emirates as a civil society group issues a warning over the country’s human-rights record.
Canada and the UAE signed a free-trade deal last week when Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed met with Prime Minister Mark Carney during a visit to Ottawa.
They also announced plans to start negotiations on an extradition treaty and a mutual legal assistance treaty.
Amani Khalfan, a spokesperson for the social justice organization Inter Pares, asked what kind of message Canada would send to the world by signing extradition and defence treaties with the UAE, a country with a troubling human-rights record.
Khalfan said the UAE’s record of unlawful and arbitrary detentions is “appalling.”
She cited the case of Sudanese advocate Mohammed Farouk Salman Mahmoud, who she said was imprisoned for over a year and a half in the UAE without charges.
Authorities said he was under investigation for insulting the UAE head of state. Amnesty International said he was released on Aug. 22.
The UAE has taken on increasing importance in global politics and has been praised for work aimed at ending conflicts in the Mideast and Ukraine.
But the country also has been accused of supporting a militia in Sudan that has been accused of genocide — a claim Abu Dhabi denies.
“While we recognize that diversifying trade and investment is an important goal, it is clear that the UAE is supporting a militia that has carried out genocide, and continues to do so,” Khalfan said.
“In the context of such massacres, prioritizing economic partnerships over human rights means that Canada is at risk of seeking blood money in the UAE.”
Kwame Bonsu, a spokesperson for the Department of Justice, said strengthening Canada’s foreign partnerships on investigating, prosecuting and preventing serious crime is critical to keeping Canadians safe.
Bonsu said an extradition treaty would help bring to justice individuals accused or convicted of serious crimes, such as money laundering, drug trafficking or cybercrime.
“The UAE’s increasing and successful international partnerships on extradition and mutual legal assistance with countries that take a similar approach to these matters as Canada, such as the United Kingdom, Ireland, Belgium, France, Italy, Sweden, and the Netherlands, makes this a suitable moment at which to revisit the UAE’s invitation to negotiate with Canada,” said Bonsu.
A mutual legal assistance treaty, Bonsu said, would facilitate the exchange of evidence and other forms of legal assistance in criminal investigations and prosecutions.
“This type of treaty helps authorities in both countries investigate and prosecute serious crimes,” Bonsu said.
Seventeen civil society organizations signed an open letter earlier this year warning Canada against deeper ties to the UAE and arguing the country is perpetuating the war in Sudan. The letter said that as Canada looks to diversify its trade, it needs to assert support for human rights as a core Canadian value.
Carney travelled to the United Arab Emirates last year. At the end of that November visit, the prime minister said Ottawa was working on a $1-billion project to expand critical minerals processing capacity in Canada.
The UAE pledged to invest about $70 billion in Canada.
The Prime Minister’s Office said last week’s visit by the crown prince to Ottawa led to “significant progress” on the UAE’s commitment to invest in Canada.
It said Emirati multinational logistics company DP World has signed an agreement with the Arctic Gateway Group and CentrePort Canada to advance trade opportunities and develop a transportation corridor linking the Port of Churchill, the Hudson Bay Railway, CentrePort Canada and DP World’s global logistics network.
It also said agreements were signed between renewable energy company Masdar and Natural Resources Canada on green energy projects, and between Invest in Canada and the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry on sharing information and co-ordinating visits.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 2, 2026.
— With files from Dylan Robertson
Catherine Morrison, The Canadian Press
