PM PURSUES DEEPER TRADE, SECURITY TIES IN ASIA
Trudeau in Manila to pursue deeper trade, security ties in Asia Pacific
Justin Trudeau landed in the Philippines on Sunday with the goal of raising Canada’s profile in the Asia-Pacific region, especially on security issues and trade.
This week, Trudeau will become the first sitting Canadian prime minister to participate in the annual East Asia Summit and is the only one who’s ever been invited, his office said.
Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said Sunday, after she and Trudeau arrived in Manila, that the East Asia Summit will give him a chair at the top security table in the region.
He will sit alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump during discussions on the security situation involving North Korea, she said.
“That is a really big deal,” Freeland said of the forum, which is held in conjunction with the annual summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
“Canada has never been there before.”
The ASEAN summit itself will give Trudeau an opportunity to advance his trade agenda with the emerging bloc of 10 Southeast Asian countries, which is already Canada’s sixth-largest trading partner.
Combined, the countries boast a market of 640 million people and an expanding middle class. They have been churning out significant economic growth.
With the uncertainty surrounding Canada’s NAFTA renegotiation, the Asia-Pacific has become increasingly important in the government’s eyes.
Ottawa has been taking steps to increase its presence in the region. In September, the federal government opened exploratory free-trade talks with ASEAN and last year it named an ambassador for the region.