The federal government is defending its plan to start talks on an extradition treaty with the United Arab Emirates as civil society groups issue warnings over the country’s human-rights record.

Canada and the UAE signed a free-trade deal last week when the 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 byg 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.”

Get daily National news 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.

An extradition treaty is an agreement between countries that allows one country to request the surrender and transfer by another country of an individual accused of crimes. The federal government’s website says there are three key stages to Canada’s extradition process.

First, the justice minister must issue an “authority to proceed.”Next, Canadian courts need to say whether there is enough evidence to justify an individual’s extradition. The justice minister must also decide whether to order the individual’s surrender to the foreign state. The individual can then seek judicial review of the minister’s order or appeal the decision.

“In all cases, the conduct for which extradition is sought must be considered criminal in both the requesting country and in Canada,” says the government website.

The Extradition Act says the minister should refuse to issue an extradition order if they believe it would be “unjust or oppressive,” or if the request for extradition is made to prosecute or punish someone for things like race, religion or nationality.

The act says the minister also can refuse to issue an extradition order if they think the conduct for which the request was made is punishable by death under the laws of the country requesting extradition.

Ketty Nivyabandi, secretary general of Amnesty International Canada’s English-speaking section, said in an email her organization is also concerned by the talk of an extradition treaty given the UAE’s “disturbing” record on human rights.

“Amnesty International has documented grossly unfair mass trials, arbitrary detention and enforced disappearances in the UAE, including the disappearance of poet Abdul Rahman Al-Qaradawi following his extradition in 2025,” she said. “Our global research has also found torture to be correlated with enforced disappearances.”Nivyabandi said Canada should not rely on diplomatic assurances from the UAE. She said such promises can’t reliably prevent torture or erase Canada’s legal duty never to send someone where they face a real risk of abuse.

“If these talks move forward, Canadian officials must proceed with extreme caution and, ultimately, should not enter into an agreement unless and until they have evidence and full confidence that human rights will be upheld,” said Nivyabandi.

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. —with files from Dylan Robertson