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The Canadian delegation was composed of the following members: From the Senate: Hon. Joseph A. Day, Senator (Delegation Co-Leader); Hon. Percy E. Downe, Senator; Hon. John D. Wallace, Senator. From the House of Commons: Hon. Bryon Wilfert, P.C. M.P. (Delegation Co-Leader); Sukh Dhaliwal, M.P.; Jean Dorion, M.P., John Duncan, M.P., Andrew Saxton, M.P., James Rajotte, M.P. The delegation was assisted by Ms. Elizabeth Kingston, Executive Secretary of the Canada-Japan Inter-Parliamentary Group and the Canada-China Legislative Association. The Honourable Bryon Wilfert, P.C., M.P. and the Honourable Joseph A. Day, Senator, led the Canadian parliamentary delegation which participated in the 18th Annual Meeting of the Asia Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF), held in Singapore, Republic of Singapore from January 17 to January 22, 2010. Delegates from 20 member parliaments and one observer country attended the meeting. The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) was also represented at the conference. The Forum, held on an annual basis, 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 and its subcommittees. During the 18th Meeting the delegates exchanged views on a number of agenda items which were grouped in four broad categories: 1) Political and Security Issues in the Asia-Pacific; 2) Economic and Trade Issues in the Asia-Pacific; 3) Regional Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific Region; and 4) Future Work of APPF. The program of the conference is attached in Appendix A. The Forum allowed for dynamic discussions between parliamentarians and led to the adoption of a Joint Communiqué and 14 resolutions on a wide range of subjects including the global financial situation, terrorism, water and environmental sustainability, the situation in the Korean Peninsula, energy security, trade facilitation, climate change, as well as promoting youth dialogue across the Asia-Pacific region. The text of the Joint Communiqué as well as a listing of these resolutions can be found in Appendix B. The resolutions submitted by the Canadian delegation may be found in Appendix C. While attending the conference, the Canadian delegation was also able to participate in five bilateral meetings with the delegations from the Federated States of Micronesia, Vietnam, the Republic of Korea, Japan, and Mongolia. Meeting between Canada and Federated States of Micronesia delegations Mr. Joseph J. Urusemal, Leader of the delegation representing the Federated States of Micronesia and other delegation members met with members of the Canadian delegation. Dr. Urusemal expressed concern of the issue of rising sea levels in the South Pacific which threatens the very existence of the Micronesian States. Although caused principally by global warming, the rising sea levels are exacerbated by both coastal erosion and typhoons. He hoped that Canada would work with the United Nations to bring about a proposal to reduce carbon emissions, the predominant root cause of climate change. He addressed the plight of several island states, particularly Kiribati and the Cook Islands, whereby its residents have been re-locating to Australia and New Zealand due to increased fear of losing their homes and livelihoods. The Micronesian delegation very much appreciated the work of the 14th APPCED meeting in Palau which delivered to the Copenhagen conference a series of recommendations to bring to light the need for a binding agreement to develop a scientific means to measure the rising sea levels and to deal with the devastating effects of erosion and deforestation brought about by rising sea levels. The Canadian delegation suggested that the Canada Fund might be a means of financial support to achieve such goals. Meeting between Canada and Vietnam delegations The Canadian delegation met with Her Excellency Mrs. Tong Thi Phong, leader of the Vietnamese delegation and Vice-President of the Vietnam National Assembly and accompanying delegation and began by congratulating Vietnam on assuming the presidency of ASEAN. The Vietnamese delegation remarked that education is one of the country’s priorities and while there are presently over 700 students from Vietnam who choose to study in Canada each year, the country would like to see this number increased. Vietnam is very pleased to be included in the 25 priority countries outlined in the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) policy and the Vietnamese delegation highlighted projects related to the judiciary and education as being particularly beneficial. Presently, over 700 students from Vietnam come to Canada to study in its post-secondary institutions. Moreover, Vietnam is modeling its school system on that of Ontario and has engaged 15,000 teachers from Toronto, Ottawa and the Niagara region to assist in implementing the program. It was noted that an increasing number of Canadian companies are investing in Vietnam, due in large measure to the sizeable Vietnamese community in Canada. Of particular note is the interest of Canadian companies in developing the oil reserves off the coast of Vietnam. Both delegations also expressed an interest in furthering parliamentary cooperation between the respective Parliaments, relating most particularly to the committee system and the legislative process. Meeting between Canada and the Republic of Korea delegations The Canadian delegation met with the Korean delegation, led by the Honourable Mr. Lee Jae Sun. Both delegations agreed on the importance of their relationship, made all the stronger due to their economic and trade partnership. In this respect, hope was expressed that negotiations leading to a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between Canada and Korea may reach an early conclusion. It was agreed that it was important to continue to promote the issue in both countries, given the benefits already derived from trade and investment opportunities. Such an agreement would further enhance the benefits for Canadians most notably in the agriculture, fish and forestry sectors and establish a greater strategic presence in the Northeast Asian market. The Canadian delegation did state that Hyundai should establish a presence in Canada, remarking that Canadians, while recognizing the excellence of the Hyundai product, may not be so willing to buy from a company that has not invested in Canada. The issue of beef imports to Korea remains of concern to Canada and it was expressed that a speedy and satisfactory resolution could be attained. Canada’s long-standing relationship with the Republic of Korea has led to the fact that it is now home to the largest number of ex-patriot Koreans in the world. Delegation members from both sides also remarked on the address of Prime Minister Harper to the Korean National Assembly. Finally the Korean delegation expressed its gratefulness to Canada for its concerted pressure to work towards the denuclearization of North Korea. Meeting between Canada and Japan delegations The Canadian delegation expressed its appreciation for the most successful visit of Their Imperial Majesties, the Emperor and Empress of Japan, in celebration of the 80th Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The visit marked 56 years since the last visit of the Emperor to Canada. Moreover, delegation members remarked on the outstanding work of Ambassador Nishida, the Japanese Ambassador to Canada. The issue of Canada’s oil supply was raised with delegation members stating that Canada could supply Japan with a steady supply of oil. Western Canada’s oil reserves in fact are second in the world after those of Saudi Arabia. The Canadians noted that Japan has been moving away from its more traditional approach of cheque book diplomacy, and would like to see a greater engagement on the part of the Japanese in Afghanistan. As it concerns the environment and the economy, Japan expressed that its growth strategy is based on the creation of green jobs, and is moving towards a sizeable investment on low carbon vehicles, both hybrid and electric. Finally, the Canadian delegation raised the issue of child abduction, and hoped that Japan would move towards a ratification of the Hague Convention on the Rights of the Child. Meeting between Canada and Mongolia delegations The Canadian delegation expressed its congratulations to Mongolia for hosting the 19th Meeting of the Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum in Ulaanbaatar in January 2011. The Mongolian delegation expressed it appreciation for the establishment of the Canadian Embassy in Ulaanbaatar in the Spring of 2008. In the area of military cooperation, both Canada and Mongolia were delighted with the agreement between the two countries to provide training assistance to the Mongolian military. The most wide-ranging discussion concerned the subject of energy and mining resources with a great interest to develop Mongolia’s renewable energy sector. The Ivanhoe mining project has to date involved a $100 million investment and it was acknowledged that Mongolia had great scope for further development of its natural resources base, and would welcome Canada’s continued interest and investment in the development of such resources. It was also expressed that Mongolia would appreciate the assistance of Canada in the development of its capital base markets as it has only been 20 years since the shift to a market-based economy. They are specifically looking to revive the capital market through legislation designed to allow banks to merge and to allow state companies with mining deposits to register for shares. The current government plan is to combine all the state ventures into one company and then sell 25% of such on the stock exchange. Both sides expressed their geographic similarities of being next to two very large neighbours – for Mongolia, Russia and China and for Canada, the United States and Russia and looked forward to further cooperation, especially in the areas of military training and parliamentary exchanges. Conclusion The Canadian Parliament attaches great importance to the work of the Asia Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF) and is proud to be one of its founding members. The Forum has allowed Canadian parliamentarians to engage in dialogue with their international counterparts throughout the Asia Pacific region. Given the global economic crisis and the need to guard against protectionist tendencies, this region is of increasing strategic importance to Canada. The Canadian section of APPF looks forward to participating in the 19th Annual Meeting in Mongolia in January 2011. A summary of the expenditures incurred for this activity is attached. Respectfully submitted,
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