Saskatchewan’s premier says he sees Prime Minister Mark Carney’s meeting with China’s President Xi Jinping as a positive step forward.
Premier Scott Moe said Friday he remains hopeful the ongoing discussions between the two nations can result in the removal of China’s tariffs on Canadian food products, including canola.
Having those tariffs lifted after just one meeting, however, wasn’t a likely outcome, he said.
“It wouldn’t be realistic to think that you have one meeting in eight years and you resolve all the differences that have accumulated over that time. There’s a broader relationship that needs to build,” Moe said.
“The fact that there is a plan to engage again at the Prime Minister/President level? Positive. The fact that we have business delegations on the ground from Saskatchewan as we speak? That’s positive.
“We have trade and export folks that are going to work alongside our international trade office in China next week … our trade office has been very integral, not only in the successful visit that we had, but also, I think, integral in supporting the federal government in this process.”
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Moe said the ultimate goal is for Canada to have unfettered trade access as soon as possible with China, the United States, India, and any other global trading partners.
“It’s how we create wealth in this province and how we create wealth in this nation,” he said.
“It’s not always a straight line, as we see most recently with the last number of months of negotiation with our largest trading partner, the United States of America, but it’s something we need to remain committed to.”
Carney, for his part, has said he was pleased with the meeting, calling it a “turning point” in relations between Ottawa and Beijing. The two leaders spoke for about 40 minutes Friday at an economic summit in South Korea.
“We now have a turning point in the relationship, a turning point that creates opportunities for Canadian families, for Canadian businesses and Canadian workers, and also creates a path to address current issues,” Carney told reporters.
The Prime Minister has accepted an invitation to participate in further trade talks in China.
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