Saudi Arabia and Canada have agreed to restore full diplomatic ties and appoint new ambassadors, a statement from Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday, <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/the-americas/canada-seeks-uae-help-to-defuse-row-with-saudi-arabia-1.757891" target="_blank">ending a dispute that began in 2018</a>. The decision follows discussions held between <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/tags/justin-trudeau/" target="_blank">Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau</a> and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation summit in Bangkok in November last year, according to the Saudi Foreign Ministry statement. “Punitive trade measures will be lifted,” a Canadian government source told Reuters. “Empty chairs at the end of the day don't push our interests forward, and they don't push things like human rights forward. “We've seen in recent years that Saudi is an important global player. Saudi Arabia helped evacuate Canadians [in Sudan], and they're also playing an important role in finding a solution to the conflict there.” Canada will appoint Jean-Philippe Linteau as its new ambassador to Riyadh. Saudi Arabia <a href="https://www.thenationalnews.com/world/mena/saudi-arabia-expels-canada-envoy-full-statement-from-riyadh-1.757333" target="_blank">expelled Canada’s ambassador in 2018</a>, recalled its own ambassador from Ottawa and froze all new trade. The decision came after Canada's embassy in Riyadh published a tweet in Arabic calling for the immediate release of women's rights activists held by Saudi Arabia. Riyadh said at the time that it considered the statement a breach of Saudi Arabia’s sovereignty. Following the spat, Saudi Arabia also moved to suspend flights, trade and scholarships with Canada. At the time of the fallout, Canada was receiving at least 10 per cent of its imported crude oil from Saudi Arabia while bilateral trade between the two nations averaged $3 billion a year. The freezing of diplomatic and trade relations also affected Saudis who were studying in Canada. Saudi Arabia suspended all educational exchange programmes with Canada and moved Saudi scholarship recipients there to other countries.
