A Guide to Canadian Diplomatic Relations 1925-1983

Terrence Paris is Public Services Librarian at Mount St. Vincent
University in Halifax.

The countries with which Canada has or has had diplomatic relations are listed in alphabetical order, with the following information where appropriate: the date of recognition of legitimacy; the date at which diplomatic relations were established; the date of the first Canadian mission or legation; mission closures; termination of relations; personnel withdrawal. Much of the information has been gleaned from official publications of the Department of External Affairs with reference to the issues and page numbers of the Annual Report, Annual Review, Communique, or Press Release. Some facts have been verified by internal working documents or by interview with personnel of the Historical Division of the Department.

In a short introductory essay on the beginnings of Canadian diplomatic relations, DeLong clarifies the distinctions made between the recognition of a state and the recognition of a government and between an embassy and a high commission. He outlines the slow, at times tentative, evolution of an independent Canadian diplomacy from the Statute of Westminster (1931), which legitimized Canada’s status as a sovereign state, then to the letters patent of 1947, which empowered the Governor General “to exercise all powers and authorities belonging to the Sovereign of Canada” and ultimately to January 1, 1978, when the Governor General was at last able to sign the letters of credence and recall.

Within the strict limits of its concern, this guide is invaluable; for the wider context of Canadian foreign policy, researchers and students should refer to A Bibliography of Works on Canadian Foreign Policy, published by the Canadian Institute of International Affairs.