Last Update: January 13, 2023, 07:24 AM IST
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida arrive at a joint news conference in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (Image: Reuters)
Trudeau told his counterpart that Canada could supply Japan with a host of commodities and resources, including agricultural resources and important minerals.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Thursday met his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida in Ottawa, where they committed to strengthen their security partnership along with economic ties in the Indo-Pacific region.
“We talked a lot about how Canada can be a reliable supplier of not only energy, but commodities and resources, including agricultural resources, important minerals,” Trudeau said at a joint news conference in the Canadian capital.
Their meeting marked an opportunity to address major defense strategy reforms by Japan, which has significantly increased its military spending.
Trudeau applauded Tokyo’s reappraisal, noting the rise in East Asia of “authoritarian powers” including Russia and China, whose government said Canada sees as “increasingly disruptive” on the global stage.
Kishida is the first Asian leader to visit Canada since Ottawa announced its new Indo-Pacific policy in November to counter China’s influence.
“As the international order is aware of the various challenges,” Kishida said, “Japan will strengthen our cooperation with Canada to maintain and strengthen peace and stability.”
“We agreed that we will resolutely oppose unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the East China Sea and South China Sea by force,” he said.
Kishida has spent recent days in Europe where he received assurances from France and Britain on new security cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region.
On the energy front, the Japanese leader said he believed liquefied natural gas (LNG) would play a key role in the island nation’s energy transformation.
Canada is set to become a significant electricity supplier to Japan and South Korea, notably through its LNG export terminal in western Canada’s British Columbia province to open in 2025.
After his visit to Ottawa, Kishida left for the US capital Washington on Friday.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)