Report

The Canadian delegation was composed of the following members:

From the Senate:  Hon. Joseph Day, Senator; Hon. Terry Stratton, Senator; Hon. Donald H. Oliver, Senator

From the House of Commons:  Mr. Gerald Keddy, M.P. (Delegation Co‑leader);  Mr. Tom Wappel, M.P. (Delegation Co‑leader);  Mr. Dennis Bevington, M.P.;  Mr. Daryl Kramp, M.P.;  Mr. John Maloney, M.P.;  Mr. James Rajotte, M.P.

The delegation was assisted by Mr. Paul Cardegna, Association Secretary, of the Canada-Japan Inter-Parliamentary Group and the Canada-China Legislative Association.

            Mr. Gerald Keddy, M.P. and Mr. Tom Wappel, M.P., led the Canadian parliamentary delegation which participated in the 15^th Annual Meeting of the Asia Pacific Parliamentarians Forum (APPF), held in Moscow, Russian Federation, from January 21 to January 26, 2007.  Delegates from 23 member parliaments and one observer country attended the 15^th Meeting.  The Forum, held on an annual basis and composed of member parliaments from twenty three countries is one of the most significant and diverse gatherings of parliamentarians from the Asia Pacific Region. Canadian delegates made various interventions throughout the forum and actively participated in the debate in the drafting committee.

During the 15^th meeting the delegates exchanged views on a number of agenda items which were grouped in four broad categories: 1) Political and Security Matters; 2) Economic and Trade Matters in the Asia-Pacific Region; 3) Regional Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific Region; and 4) Future Work of APPF. The agenda of the conference is attached in Appendix A.

The Forum allowed for dynamic discussions between parliamentarians and led to the adoption of the Joint Communiqué and 20 resolutions on various subjects such as climate change, combating pandemics, political, security and economic cooperation and energy security. The text of the Joint Communiqué and the text of the resolutions adopted can be found in Appendix A and B, respectively.

While attending the conference, the Canadian delegation was also able to participate in three bilateral meetings with the Chinese, Japanese and Mexican delegations:

Meeting between the Canadian and Chinese delegations:

The Canadian delegation had the opportunity to meet with Mr. Xu Jialu, Vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress and Head of the Chinese delegation to the 15^th APPF conference and Mr. Feng Changgen, a member of the Chinese delegation.  Both delegations recalled the long history of cordial relations between Canada and China and reiterated their desire to maintain and strengthen these links through increased bilateral visits despite the presence of recent diplomatic irritants. Other subjects discussed were energy security policies, clean energy technology, economic and social development and increasing business ventures between China and Canada.

Meeting between the Canadian and Japanese delegations:

The Canadian delegation had the opportunity to meet with Mr. Yoshinobu Shimamura, Head of Delegation and the Japanese delegation to the 15^th APPF conference.  Both delegations confirmed their interest in strengthening the already robust bilateral relationship existing between the two countries.  The Canadian delegates discussed their government’s desire to negotiate a free trade agreement between Japan and Canada.  The Japanese delegates, while interested in increasing Canadian-Japanese trade and economic links, stated that Japan has to continue protecting it agricultural industry from foreign competition in order to protect Japan’s agricultural self-sufficiency.  Both sides resolved to continue these discussions and others at future bilateral events.

Meeting between the Canadian and Mexican delegations:

The Canadian delegation had the opportunity to meet with Senator Carlos Jimenez Macias, Head of Delegation and the Mexican delegation to the 15^th APPF conference.  Both delegations noted how beneficial the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) between Canada, Mexico and the United States of America has been. However, the Mexican delegation suggested that future NAFTA discussions should include discussions on the subject of migratory workers.  They suggested that parliamentarians from all three signatory countries should agree to meet annually, to discuss issues of mutual interest.  The Canadian delegation agreed that tripartite discussions would be beneficial and suggested that these be held on an annual basis.  The Canadian delegates also raised concerns about recent violence against Canadian tourists in Mexico.  Finally, both delegations agreed that Mexico should have a position on the APPF Executive Committee.

Conclusion

The Canadian Parliament is a founding member of the Asia Pacific Parliamentarians Forum.  The Forum has allowed Canadian parliamentarians to engage in dialogue with their international counterparts in a Region of the world which is of increasing strategic importance to Canada. The Canadian section of APPF looks forward to participating in the 16^th Annual Meeting in Auckland, New Zealand in 2008.

A summary of the expenditures incurred for this activity is attached.

Respectfully submitted,