News / Brèves BRICS Silk Road / Route de la soie Back to previous selection / Retour à la sélection précédente Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in Canada — PM Trudeau To Establish Extradition Treaty as the Anti-China Lobby Howls 22 September 2016 EIRNS—Premier Li Keqiang went from the UN General Assembly in New York to Canada for a four-day visit. Li posted an article in the Globe and Mail on the new, strong ties between the two, which started with Trudeau’s recent visit to China, where he announced that Canada would break from Obama’s policy and join the AIIB. Li writes that the two economies are complementary, and that his visit will "inaugurate the new annual dialogue between our heads of government and further promote mutual understanding and mutually beneficial cooperation between our countries.... "Mutual trust is the cornerstone of friendly relations and cooperation between China and Canada," Li said, voicing the hope of stepping up communication and coordination with Canada at various international forums to promote world peace and stability as well as help global economic recovery, Xinhua reported. "The two sides should respect each other’s concerns on issues of vital interests and the right to independently choose the path of development and overcome distractions to make sure that the ship of China-Canada relations power ahead on the right course," he added. Economic cooperation and trade, he said, should be "the driving force of China-Canada relations." Interestingly, he noted that despite the decline in world trade, China-Canada trade continued to rise last year, with Chinese companies’ investment in Canada increasing by 126 percent over the year. Most importantly, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that he will negotiate an extradition treaty with China, insisting that it was crucial for building trust between the two nations. While the anti-China mob is screaming that Trudeau is sabotaging the human rights of Chinese citizens oppressed by the evil Chinese legal system, the Chinese press is reporting that many corrupt Chinese officials, being hunted down by Xi Jinping’s highly effective crackdown on corruption at the highest levels, have fled to Canada. Noting that the US and the British have no such extradition treaty with China, they congratulate Canada on its support for the rule of law. Here is the transcript of the above CCTV Video: In Canada, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has held talks with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and other Canadian senior officials. The two countries have agreed to initiate an annual dialogue mechanism between the Chinese premier and Canadian Prime Minister, starting this year. Li said China is willing to strengthen exchanges with Canada at all levels. Li also said both countries can benefit from closer trade relations. Trudeau welcomes Li’s visit and the new dialogue mechanism. He said his country is willing to further expand its cooperation with China. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (L) holds talks with his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau in Ottawa, Canada, Sept. 22, 2016. (Xinhua/Huang Jingwen) It was a meeting of familiar faces. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang saw Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in China just last month. And as they did then, the two got down to business. Specifically, the issue of trade. China is Canada’s second biggest trading partner, worth around $50 billion. Trudeau said he and Premier Li agreed on Thursday to try to double that number by 2025. Trudeau said, "We are pleased to have witnessed the commercial signings today that will help achieve this goal. We know that there’s a huge amount of untapped potential in our commercial relationship." "This new trade target will benefit Canadian workers and business owners, while creating new, well-paying jobs." China also wants to open talks on a bilateral Free Trade Agreement. But many Canadians remain suspicious of free trade, in general, and of China, in general. Trudeau’s openness to a possible extradition deal with China has been met at home with criticism, and concern over the potential for executions. A quarter of China’s 100 Most Wanted are said to be on Canadian soil. China wants them back, and has defended its judicial system. Li said, "Extradition requires coordination and consensus from both sides. China has signed extradition treaty with more than 40 countries, including some developed countries in Europe. Both China and Canada are open to talk on this issue." Paul Evans is an expert on cross-Pacific relations, at the University of British Columbia. He said, "Fundamentally, what Mr. Trudeau and his government is trying to say is that we need to live together. It’s not fundamentally matter of changing China, but living with China." "And that’s a new story for Canadians. It’s going to take a little bit of time. There’s a missionary impulse here. But building a relationship in a 21st century way, that’s where I think Mr. Trudeau wants the future to go. ." Both sides say, despite their differences, these frequent high level exchanges should set the tone for more frequent low level ones. And, ultimately, a better tone for better ties.