Global, economic security top priorities as Trudeau heads to South Korea, G7 summit
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is set to leave Monday for a weeklong trip to Asia, where he will make his first official visit to South Korea and attend the G7 leaders' summit in Japan.
The trip comes at a time when the world is collectively facing security threats and economic uncertainty magnified by climate change.
The government plane left from Ottawa on Monday afternoon, but Trudeau was not on board. He was expected to first visit Edmonton to meet with members of the Canadian military who are helping fight wildfires in Alberta.
The prime minister is expected to be in Seoul between May 16 and May 18, after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's visit to Ottawa last fall. Since then, both countries have released their Indo-Pacific strategies, plans that aim to counterbalance Chinese influence by increasing economic and military ties in the region.
Trudeau is also scheduled to attend the G7 leaders' summit in Hiroshima, Japan, between May 19 and 21.
As G7 host, Japan said it chose to have the summit in Hiroshima to symbolize its "commitment to peace" during a time of growing risk of weapons of mass destruction and an ongoing war in Ukraine.
The United States dropped the world's first atomic bomb on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, destroying the city and killing 140,000 people. It dropped a second bomb three days later on Nagasaki, killing 70,000 more.
While in Seoul, Trudeau is expected to attend a ceremony to open the Kapyong Battle Commemorative Trail, meant to honour Canada's contributions during the Korean War.
He is not expected to visit the demilitarized zone separating North and South Korea.
Leaders of G7 countries -- Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy and Japan -- meet annually to collaborate on shared goals. This year's summit will focus on seven main agenda items, including geopolitical and global security issues, economic resilience and climate change and energy.
"I think it's going to be one of the most successful summits ever since they started in 1975," said John Kirton, a political science professor who heads the G7 research group at the University of Toronto.
"Because never before has a G7 summit faced so many big, interconnected global crises all at once."
As they reflect on the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, face an uncertain economic outlook and work to avoid a climate crisis, Kirton said the G7 leaders have no shortage of issues to tackle.
One of Canada's top priorities will be strengthening ties between the allied countries to address these converging challenges. Canada is expected to seek the G7 members' co-operationon providing ongoing support to Ukraine as well as addressing climate change.
The Liberal government is investing heavily in the green economy transition, arguing that promoting cleaner sources of energy and technology will bring economic prosperity to the country while curbing the risk of catastrophic climate change.
In a statement Trudeau provided to Kirton's group before the summit, the prime minister linked addressing climate change with increased security.
"The clean economy presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to not only keep 1.5 degrees Celsius of warming within reach and to avert the worst impacts of climate change, but also to create and secure good, middle-class jobs for our people and grow our economies," Trudeau wrote.
"When we cut emissions we can drive economic growth and build new strong, reliable supply chains that reduce our reliance on raw materials and components from countries such as China and Russia, too. This is economic policy, it is climate policy and it is security policy."
The clean economy transition is also expected to be the focus of Trudeau's visit to South Korea.
In an interview with The Canadian Press, South Korea's ambassador to Canada, Lim Woongsoon, said it will be at "the top of the agenda." Lim said South Korea is interested in increasing business ties in areas such as clean fuel and critical minerals.
"Canada can be a very ideal partner for Korean companies to manufacture electric vehicle batteries and battery components," he said.
The trip comes as Canada attempts to strengthen its relationships with Japan and South Korea, which are longtime allies and trading partners.
Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly has said the relationship with each is so natural that Ottawa has at times taken it for granted, but that global instability is a time to shore up these bonds.
"We want to be as close to Korea, to Japan as (we are) to Germany, France and Great Britain; that's our goal," Joly said last December.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 15, 2023.
-- With files from The Associated Press.
IN DEPTH
Trudeau, key election players to testify at foreign interference hearings. What you need to know
The public hearings portion of the federal inquiry into foreign interference in Canadian elections and democratic institutions are picking back up this week. Here's what you need to know.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Who is supporting, opposing new online harms bill?
Now that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's sweeping online harms legislation is before Parliament, allowing key stakeholders, major platforms, and Canadians with direct personal experience with abuse to dig in and see what's being proposed, reaction is streaming in. CTVNews.ca has rounded up reaction, and here's how Bill C-63 is going over.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
TREND LINE What Nanos' tracking tells us about Canadians' mood, party preference heading into 2024
Heading into a new year, Canadians aren't feeling overly optimistic about the direction the country is heading, with the number of voters indicating negative views about the federal government's performance at the highest in a decade, national tracking from Nanos Research shows.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
opinion Don Martin: Pierre Poilievre's road to apparent victory will soon start to get rougher
Pierre Poilievre and his Conservatives appear to be on cruise control to a rendezvous with the leader's prime ministerial ambition, but in his latest column for CTVNews.ca, Don Martin questions whether the Conservative leader may be peaking too soon.
opinion Don Martin: The Trudeau lessons from Brian Mulroney's legacy start with walking away
Justin Trudeau should pay very close attention to the legacy treatment afforded former prime minister Brian Mulroney, who died on Thursday at age 84, writes columnist Don Martin.
opinion Don Martin: ArriveCan debacle may be even worse than we know from auditor's report
It's been 22 years since a former auditor general blasted the Chretien government after it 'broke just about every rule in the book' in handing out private sector contracts in the sponsorship scandal. In his column for CTVNews.ca, Don Martin says the book has been broken anew with everything that went on behind the scenes of the 'dreaded' ArriveCan app.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Weather alerts issued for 7 provinces, 1 territory
Warnings of up to 60 millimetres of rain and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces and one territory ahead of the Easter weekend.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Luxury cruise line selling world cruise suite for US$1.7 million
Luxury operator Regent Seven Seas Cruises is raising their price tag to eye-watering levels, with a suite on an upcoming 140-day world voyage costing US$1.7 million.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
A Filipino villager is nailed to a cross for the 35th time on Good Friday to pray for world peace
A Filipino villager has been nailed to a wooden cross for the 35th time to reenact Jesus Christ’s suffering in a brutal Good Friday tradition he said he would devote to pray for peace in Ukraine, Gaza and the disputed South China Sea.
Ontario homeowner on the hook for $27,000 when contractor severed power line
An Ontario man who built a garage on his property has been locked in a battle with his electricity provider for a year and half over a severed power line.
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
'Oppenheimer' finally premieres in Japan to mixed reactions and high emotions
'Oppenheimer' finally premiered Friday in the nation where two cities were obliterated 79 years ago by the nuclear weapons invented by the American scientist who was the subject of the Oscar-winning film. Japanese filmgoers' reactions understandably were mixed and highly emotional.
Local Spotlight
Conservation officers seize 9-foot python from Chilliwack home
B.C. conservation officers recently seized a nine-foot-long Burmese python from a home in Chilliwack.
N.B. man wins $64 million from Lotto 6/49
A New Brunswicker will go to bed Thursday night much richer than he was Wednesday after collecting on a winning lottery ticket he let sit on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.
Ontario auto-insurance changes could leave some vulnerable, says expert
The Ontario government is introducing changes to auto-insurance, but some experts say the move is ill-advised.
Tipping is off the table at this Toronto restaurant
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff.
A tiny critter who could: Elusive Newfoundland Marten makes improbable comeback
Newfoundland’s unique version of the Pine Marten has grown out of its threatened designation.
Ontario man loses $12K to deepfake scam involving Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
A Toronto man is out $12,000 after falling victim to a deepfake cryptocurrency scam that appeared to involve Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Record-setting pop tab collection for Ontario boy
It started small with a little pop tab collection to simply raise some money for charity and help someone — but it didn’t take long for word to get out that 10-year-old Jace Weber from Mildmay, Ont. was quickly building up a large supply of aluminum pop tabs.
'I was just like, holy cow!': Saskatoon dumpster divers reclaim wasted valuables
There’s a group of people in Saskatoon that proudly call themselves dumpster divers, and they’re turning the city’s trash into treasure.
Ontario to balance budget ahead of 2026 election, citing delay due to 'economic uncertainty'
Ontario is facing a larger than anticipated deficit but the Doug Ford government still plans to balance its books before the next provincial election.