Relations between the two capitals have warmed in recent months as Ottawa’s ties with its American ally deteriorated.
The head of Chinese diplomacy declared during a trip to Ottawa that high-level political and security discussions would resume with Canada, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Saturday, a sign of closer ties.
Relations between the two capitals have warmed in recent months as Ottawa’s ties with its American ally deteriorated, and after the meeting in January in Beijing between Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
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Wang Yi’s two-day visit to Canada, which began Thursday, is the first by a Chinese foreign minister to this country in ten years. “Relations have taken a new course, exchanges and cooperation in all areas have been fully restored and the main economic and commercial concerns of both parties have been properly taken into account.”declared Wang Yi to his Canadian counterpart Anita Anand, according to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Some customs duties lowered
“The two sides agreed (…) to resume consultations on political and security issues at the level of foreign ministries, as well as a high-level dialogue on national security and the rule of law.”adds the press release. Beijing this year lowered certain customs duties on Canadian products, while Ottawa agreed to import tens of thousands of Chinese electric vehicles under preferential customs duties.
If relations between China and Canada have known “the vicissitudes” in recent years, Wang Yi felt that the cooperation had been “fully recovered”. According to the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Anita Anand told Wang Yi that Canada hoped “Increase its exports to China by 50% by 2030”. Bilateral trade between the two countries will reach nearly $90 billion in 2025, up 4.9% year-on-year, according to an analysis by the University of Alberta, with Canadian exports to China jumping 13.8%.
