Trudeau seeking to reset relationship with China
Print Edition
CANADIAN Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will tour the Great Wall, shoot hoops with retired basketball star Yao Ming and meet women entrepreneurs when he visits China this week to bolster trade and diplomatic ties, his office said.
There will also be meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and senior government officials during his 8-day trip which starts tomorrow and includes stops in Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong.
Trudeau will also travel to Hangzhou for the summit meeting of the Group of 20 economic powers next Sunday and Monday.
But ordinary Chinese citizens can also expect to see the playful political leader pose for selfies with locals, and reach out to them through social media, as he has done everywhere he has gone since being elected to Canada’s highest office late last year.
“The prime minister has a WeChat and Weibo account and we will be using these during the trip,” a senior government official said.
The trip, at the invitation of Premier Li Keqiang, comes as a handful of trade irritants and other stresses weigh on the two countries’ relationship.
These include Chinese plans to impose new rules on canola imports to protect against crop disease, potentially affecting CA$2 billion (US$1.5 billion) worth of annual Canadian oilseed sales to China.
Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland, who will be accompanying Trudeau, said last week that the bilateral relationship could not improve until the matter is resolved.
China, meanwhile, is seeking a lifting of restrictions on foreign ownership of Canadian oil-sands leases.
“What we need with China is to reset the relationship a little bit,” Trudeau told reporters.
A senior government official underscored the importance of the visit.
“Canada’s future prosperity is increasingly tied to China,” the official told reporters. “To grow its economy ... it’s imperative that Canada renew its relationship with China.”
Trudeau will also seek cooperation on climate change and other global issues, press for increased tourism from China, and urge Chinese business leaders to boost their investment.
He will meet managers of the Chinese conglomerate Fosun, which purchased a minority stake in Montreal-based Cirque du Soleil last year.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
