Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol weigh challenges presented by increasingly combative countries
. Both countries are in the process of developing their own Indo-Pacific strategies. The region, which stretches from North America to India’s west coast, is expected to be a centre of economic growth for decades.
He added that Western democracies, particularly those in the Indo-Pacific, should co-operate with China on issues such as climate change, and compete with the country on trade. Also on Friday, he announced that he has appointed diplomat Jennifer May as Canada’s ambassador to China, with a mandate to speak out on human rights and the rule of law. The past two ambassadors to China – former cabinet minister John McCallum and corporate executive Dominic Barton – were criticized by parliamentarians for soft-pedalling Beijing’s human rights record.