Ottawa is anticipating a potential meeting between Prime Minister Mark Carney and Chinese President Xi Jinping at an upcoming summit in South Korea, as revealed by a senior official from the Canadian government during a press briefing on Thursday. Carney has been emphasizing the importance of reestablishing a comprehensive relationship with Beijing following a period of strained relations and is scheduled to attend an APEC summit in Seoul.
Expressing his expectation of engaging with high-ranking Chinese officials within the next month, Carney’s team is optimistic about a possible meeting with President Xi at the APEC summit. The Canadian government official mentioned, “We are looking forward to a potential meeting and making necessary arrangements…we are eager for a meeting at APEC if feasible.”
In response to China’s imposition of initial anti-dumping duties on Canadian canola imports in August, which came after Canada’s decision to impose a 100% tariff on imports of Chinese electric vehicles, discussions regarding these trade disputes were held between senior officials from both Canada and China last Friday. Despite the talks, Ottawa did not disclose any immediate breakthrough in resolving these issues.