Canada Global (Web News)
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau began a 10-day tour of Asia – part of a major initiative to boost ties and foster stronger friendships in the region. His first stop, along with Trade Minister Mary Ng and Foreign Minister Melanie Joly, will be the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Cambodia.
Trudeau will then travel to Indonesia for the G20 summit in Bali, meet with leaders of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Group in Bangkok, Thailand and make a final stop in Tunisia before returning home.
The visit comes amid a recent push by the government to build stronger ties in the Indo-Pacific region and increasingly tough discussions around the cabinet table when it comes to China. “It’s the idea of moving away from China but trying to diversify its relationship with the Indo-Pacific,” said Stephanie Caron, a national security expert and associate professor at Carleton University. Here’s what you need to know about what the Trudeau government is trying to achieve in the next 10 days.
What are Canada’s goals in the Indo-Pacific region? Upon his arrival in Cambodia, Trudeau will meet with the 10 countries that make up the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which are currently negotiating a trade deal with Canada. As for the G20 summit in Indonesia, Trudeau is expected to press the world’s largest economies to single out Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
The summit aims to focus on improving health systems as well as increasing food and energy security, which Trudeau says Russia has undermined. But the trip is also happening because the Trudeau government has signaled a larger, more fundamental goal
