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A BlackBerry device is shown in front of products displayed in a glass cabinet at the Research In Motion offices in Waterloo in this file photo.MIKE CASSESE/Reuters

Prime Minister Stephen Harper wants Research In Motion Ltd. to remain a Canadian company. But the BlackBerry maker's chief executive officer thinks the government would make an exception for the right foreign investment.

Thorsten Heins, CEO of RIM, told the Globe and Mail he isn't bothered by the government's repeated comments encouraging the company to stay and grow within Canada. "I have never ever been hamstrung by them, or in any way been pushed back by them," he said.

Waterloo, Ont.-based RIM has been a rumoured takeover target as its stock price plunged amid declining market share for smartphones. Possible suitors included Samsung, Microsoft and Nokia.

The prospect of losing the country's once-mighty tech innovator to a foreign buyer prompted officials such as Canada's Industry Minister Christian Paradis to state their preference for home-grown RIM to "make sure it can grow organically," according to Reuters. This echoed similar statements by Mr. Harper earlier in 2012. A Canadian RIM would keep coveted technology and jobs in the country, and give the government room to rebuff hostile bids.

Mr. Heins said that while the government may be protective of RIM, it's not to the detriment of the company. "At the end of the day, I think they would also understand economics if we would ask them to look at certain things that, at first, might be difficult," he said.

RIM's relationship with the government was strengthened by the reorganization of the business last year. "The Canadian government was extremely helpful when we went through the really tough restructuring of RIM," Mr. Heins said.

"They helped on the community level, on the province level, on the Canada level. They want this iconic company to be a big part of Canada," Mr. Heins said.

RIM isn't the only big company Ottawa is keeping an eye on. There were plenty of discussions on net-benefit tests and the Investment Canada Act rules around foreign investment that circulated leading up to the federal government's approval of both CNOOC Ltd's $15.1-billion deal to acquire Nexen Inc. and Petronas' $5.2-billion bid for Progress Energy Resources Corp. in 2012. At the same time, Ottawa issued new guidelines for foreign investment in Canada were also outlined.

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