"As the world faces increasingly complex and intersecting global issues, Canada is committed to engaging pragmatically with a wide range of countries to advance our national interests and uphold our values," Joly wrote in a statement.

China announced the visit at a Thursday morning press briefing in Beijing, saying Joly would arrive that evening for two nights, but did not outline specific themes she'd raise with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.

"The two sides will have in-depth communication on China-Canada relations and issues of mutual interest and work for the improvement and growth of the bilateral relationship," spokesman Lin Jian said, according to an official translation.

Global Affairs Canada said Joly and Wang will discuss Canada-China relations and security issues.

The brief visit follows a shift in tone from Beijing early this year, urging Canada to work on shared priorities and draw less attention to disagreements.

Yet Joly's visit comes after Canadian security officials flagged Chinese interference as the country's greatest strategic threat. Canada's NATO allies criticized Beijing last week for posing "systemic challenges" to regional security as a "decisive enabler" of Russia's war against Ukraine.

"We need to be cautious and clear-eyed about the fact that while the tone in Beijing may have changed, the overall strategic direction of the relationship has not," Vina Nadjibulla, the research vice-president for the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada.

"Being the top diplomat, as minister Joly, it's her job to engage diplomatically, including with our adversaries."

Carleton University professor Jeremy Paltiel says many suspected Joly had been pushing for a China visit for at least a year, given her rhetoric about pragmatic diplomacy and engaging with countries despite deep disagreements.

He said the visit seemed to be hastily planned, with Joly announcing a trip to South Korea but not mentioning she would then head to China.

"They've been angling for it for a long time, but the Chinese were not biting," said Paltiel, who specializes in Canada-China relations.

After the Beijing visit, Joly will proceed with previously planned stops in Tokyo and Laos.

Her Indo-Pacific strategy in November 2022 framed China as "an increasingly disruptive global power" but one that Canada must engage with given its huge economic and environmental clout.

Paltiel said he has low expectations that any announcement will take place, noting Joly had sent her top civil servant, David Morrison, to Beijing to try finding common ground.

"They couldn't agree on what they could sign or say," Paltiel said.

"A keep-the-door-open visit is something that at least Canada would be happy with, and maybe now the Chinese are realizing that open doors are better than closed doors."

He noted that the Communist party's central committee meetings this week included a focus on continual trade reform following pressure from the European Union and other markets.

"From the Chinese side, they're worried about their international margin for manoeuvre, given the deteriorating relations with the EU and the United States, and the prospect of Trump getting elected becoming stronger," he said.

"Given that Ottawa, and in particular minister Joly, has been looking to resume dialogue for some time, I think the Chinese side has determined now is the time to seize the moment, before it becomes too (late), before the door gets shut in their face."

Nadjibulla said it also comes in the context of China facing mounting provincial debts, a real-estate crisis and sluggish consumption numbers.

"The economy is facing major internal and external headwinds," she said. "In some ways China is toning down its wolf-warrior diplomacy. It's trying to re-engage."

Nadjibulla said Joly will likely bring up interference in Canadian politics, and reiterate concerns about economic coercion and consular cases. She said fentanyl trafficking would be an important issue to raise.

Both Paltiel and Nadjibulla suspect China will push Joly against following the U.S. in restricting imports of electric vehicles from China, a topic on which Ottawa is undertaking consultations.

Nadjibulla said Joly's visit could help avoid retaliatory actions, like Beijing's decision to restrict pork and canola imports from Canada in what was widely seen as retaliation during a diplomatic crisis.

In 2018, China arrested Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor following the detention of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou in Vancouver at the request of the United States.

Kovrig and Spavor were both accused of spying in closed Chinese courts. Canada and many allies said the process amounted to arbitrary detention on bogus charges in an unaccountable justice system.

The U.S. worked out a deferred prosecution agreement in Meng's case, allowing for her release, and Beijing permitted the two Michaels, as they came to be known, to fly home in September 2021. Nadjibulla was the primary advocate for Kovrig during his detention.

The Canada China Business Council has chastised Ottawa for being an outlier in restoring high-level dialogue with Chinese leaders, noting that strained relations during the COVID-19 pandemic and incidents involving surveillance balloons were eventually overcome with ministerial visits.

The group argued Canada can still raise human-rights concerns while boosting trade. Yet in a survey it commissioned last fall, 58 per cent of Canadian business leaders polled said the risk of China arbitrarily detaining staff was still negatively affecting their operations.

Last August, Beijing kept Canada off a list of approved destinations for Chinese tour groups, and China's embassy in Ottawa said this was because of "hyped-up" interference allegations. Meanwhile, Europeans, but not Canadians, have been allowed visa-free travel to China for short trips.

This report by was first published July 18, 2024.