Maxime Burnier met with the Korean foreign minister recently. The two confirmed the two countries' commitment to establishing a free trade agreement. The issue of beef exports to Korea is still problematic. Also expect the CAW to voice opposition to cheaper Korean imports.
http://www.kois.go.kr/news/news/newsView.asp?serial_no=20071107023
Peter MacKay recently suggested that, provided North Korea complies with its nuclear disarmament commitments, Canada will resume food, and possibly other, aid to the impoverished nation. It is good to see Canada engaging itself on a material level in the Korean situation. While the current government has been supportive of six party talks, the support hasn't progressed very far beyond the rhetorical level.
Link: http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/05/02/asia/AS-GEN-Koreas-Canada-Aid.php
The Globe published a story this morning indicating that the Americans have asked Canada to participate in enforcing the Sanctions that the UN has approved against North Korea. While Canada still hasn't officially responded, it seems likely that it will participate on at least some level. This is the sort of hands on work Canada needs to be doing to raise its profile and influence in Asia. The Pacific fleet has a number of ships suitable for the task.
The question will of course be one of politics, as the Conservatives guess whether or not the mission will have public support. They've been quite battered recently on the Afghanistan issue and are thus unlikely to be keen on starting another commitment which may prove unpopular. As this action would have a very low possibility of casualties, and has UN approval it seems likely that the public will approve. The only major reservation would be that participating at this point would move Canada closer to committing in some way to a possible conflict on the Korean peninsula. However, it seems exceptionally unlikely that the situation will descend into a hot conflict. We've got a navy for a reason, and this is just the sort of mission they should be participating in.
Link: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2006/11/17/korea-cda.html
Michael Fortier is considering renaming a government building in BC which has been named after former Conservative MP Howard Green. The honouring of Green has angered Japanese and Chinese Canadians due to some of the rather racist remarks on record that have been attributed to him. Mr. Green has been quoted saying: "Orientals should be excluded from Canada" in 1939. He had more explicit things to say about the Japanese following the war.
One would guess given Canada's love of compromise that a solution will be found quickly. Fortier holds a rather unsteady position in Cabinet as it is. He of all people will want to minimize controversy.
Foreign Minister Peter MacKay has, unsurprisingly, signalled Canada's support of sanctions as a response to last week's nuclear test in North Korea. MacKay quotes Churchill in his justification of the sanctions. He also berated North Korea for acting "like an island." Apparently more fitting peninsular actions are required for progress to be made on the nuclear non-proliferation front.
Prime Minister Harper acted along with world leaders around the globe by condemning North Korea's nuclear tests this morning. Canada has not played much of a role in the recent security situation on the Korean peninsula, and likely will not in the immediate future. That said, Canada does have diplomats in Pyong Yang where America does not. Furthermore Canada has what the DPRK needs: food and energy.
Talks with South Korea on ways to cut tariffs and work towards a free trade agreement are continuing. The talks are naturally controversial amongst some Canadian industries as South Korea enjoys a trade surplus with Canada. Many believe Canada has less to gain than it has to lose from the agreement.
Link: http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_business/159424.html
The possibility of a ban in the United States on horse slaughter for human consumption has led Japan to express its non-chalance. Japan, a major market for horse meat, points out that a very small amount of it's annual consumption of horse meat is of American meat. Furthermore, Canadian exports are expected to remain unchanged, or even increase to compensate for the lack of slaughter facilities in the USA.
Link: http://www.asianpacificpost.com/portal2/ff8080810d8f7410010da8a1ef51007b.do.html
Sleeman, Canada's third largest brewer, has announced a deal that will see Sapporo breweries of Japan take over the company. Sleeman had been shopping for a buyer for a few months. Thirsty beer drinkers likely won't see any changes, excepting maybe eventual new export markets for Sleeman products.
A hockey team of young Canadians of Japanese descent is headed to Japan to face off against Japanese hockey teams. The event is billed as a cultural exchange and a way for the Canadian youths to get in touch with their Japanese roots.
LInk: http://www.richmondreview.com/portals-code/list.cgi?paper=45&cat=40&id=694657&more=
North Korea recently launched 6 older scud style missiles into the sea of Japan, while also test launching their new Taepodong 2 missile which is rumoured to have long range capability. International response has been unanimously displeased.
The Taepodong 2 had been sitting on the launching pad for over a week before launch, making people nervous the world over. I've been suspicious about the reasons NK waited so long to launch, and originally suspected it was because they were unsure of the Taepodong's capability. It was worth more to them as a bargaining chip when it was a relatively unknown entity sitting on the launch pad. Now that they've tried to launch one and it exploded a few seconds after take off, it takes some of the shine off of their missile program. That said, it certainly can't be discounted as a threat, especially in the hands of such an unpredictable government.
Canada's official response has been rather muted. The military of course participates in Norad which claims to have been immediately aware of all of the launches. Goverment response however, has been lacking. Other countries, especially those with significant Asian Pacific interests have sternly condemned the launches. Australia for instance, a country with which Canada has much in common, has made significant headlines with its condemnations. In the meantime Canada, which is actually within the claimed range of the Taepodong and counts Japan, China and Korea amongst its most important trading partners, has been surprisingly quiet.
In an attempt to secure more oil supplies South Korea's Korean National Oil Corporation has purchased an oil sands mine near Coldlake Alberta. The mine is believed to hold approximately 250 million barrels of extractable oil reserves. Don't expect news like this to be rare over the next few years. Securing oil interests in the relatively close, and reassuringly stable Canadian market is attractive to most Asian countries, especially those which have a dearth of domestic resources.
Link: http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_business/137818.html
Research in Motion announced on June 22nd that they have agreed to enter into their largest international partnership yet by pairing up with Japan's NTT DoCoMo to offer Blackberry service in Japan. Research in Motion has announced new distribution deals in China, Japan, and Taiwan over the past few months. The article linked to below mentions that initially there may not be Japanese text input ability. That to me sounds like it could be a deal breaker for Japanese businesses and consumers. I imagine RIM will do their best to sort out the input issue before the devices are brought to market.
A group of 10 Koreans in the process of being smuggled into the US were caught by the RCMP in BC. It is suspected the six females of the group were unknowingly being led into lives of forced prostitution in the Western US. The individuals were offered temporary visitors' permits to allow them to stay in Canada, but they all decided to return home to Korea.
Don't be surprised to see references to news like this story and other border news brought up by American politicians who wish to have tighter border control. It seems in many ways as if Canada is in a no-win situation. When arrests are made in Canada it is pointed out that there are illegal immigrants or terrorits who wish to cross the border from Canada. When no arrests are made it is argued that Canadian security is lacking.
Atomic Energy of Canada Limited has been awarded a large contract to re-tube the Wosong 1 Candu 6 nuclear reactor in South Korea by Korean Hydro and Nuclear Power Company Ltd. The contract is worth hundreds of millions of dollars, and will substantially increase the expected working life of the Wosong 1 reactor.
Nuclear energy is a $5 billion/year industry in Canada. That number could significantly increase if the current push for new reactors in Canada and internationally is successful.
Link: http://www.ottawabusinessjournal.com/287045773689488.php
Prince Rupert, British Columbia is in the midst of developing new container handling facilities, which upon completion will make it the closest North American container port to Asia. The developers and citizens of Prince Rupert hope this proximity will bring with it a steady stream of goods imported from Asia for the North American market. And with those goods will hopefully come jobs.
Sailing from Shanghai to Prince Rupert instead of Vancouver shaves 435 miles or 36 hours off of the sailing time. Furthermore, the new facility hopes to have the goods off the ship and on the highway/railway faster than other busier ports which are for the most part located in urban areas. The downside of course is the same thing which lends Prince Rupert its advantage, that is to say its location. While goods might get from Shanghai to Prince Rupert 36 hours faster than to Vancouver, they end up in Prince Rupert. The lucrative American, and Central Canadian markets are much further away. Hopefully the cooperation of CN Rail will ensure reliable and fast transit links to help mitigate Prince Rupert's geographic difficulties.
Link: http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/1310AP_Canada_Port_of_Prince_Rupert.html
Canada's Auto Sector is showing concern that on-going free trade talks with South Korea will be harmful to their industry. South Korea enjoys a very large trade surplus with Canada, this surplus is mostly due to its automotive and electronics industries, .
Auto industry representatives appear to have started a consciousness raising campaign. I've provided a link to one of the letters to the editor I recently read on the topic. It is important to note that the trade figures quoted in the letter deal only with automotive products. It doesn't address other industries who trade with South Korea. For a clearer picture of the numbers see here.