G20: Trudeau arrives in Indonesia for summit

Bali, Indonesia –

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau arrived in Bali, Indonesia on Monday to gather the leaders of the G20 countries.

The world’s 20 largest economies meet each year to collectively mitigate risks to the global economic system and find progress on issues ranging from climate change to nuclear safety.

As the host country of the summit, Indonesia has called on leaders to focus on strengthening health systems and enhancing food and energy security.

Indonesia disagrees with Ottawa, stressing the importance of focusing on consensus rather than division.

In regards to the ongoing conflict, Trudeau said on Sunday, “To reinforce that (Russian President Vladimir) Putin made a terrible, terrible choice when he decided to invade his peaceful neighbor. We’re going to focus on making sure the world is united.” War in Ukraine.

His remarks came at the end of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Cambodia.

“Russia bears direct and unique responsibility for most of the challenges facing the world today, whether it’s the global migration crisis, the global food crisis (or) the global energy crisis.” said at a closing press conference in Phnom Penh.

After weeks of speculation about whether Putin will attend, Moscow sent Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to the Bali summit. Prime Minister Trudeau pointed out that the summit is for government leaders.

“In general, I’m not particularly interested in talking to Lavroff,” Trudeau said in French.

Some G20 countries have said they want to maintain ties with Russia despite the conflict.

In recent months, China, India and South Africa have abstained from UN resolutions condemning Russia, and their leaders are expected to attend the summit.

Prime Minister Trudeau said when the war in Ukraine is affecting everyone, it’s the equivalent of a police force.

“It is at the heart of why many citizens are suffering now, and it is irresponsible for us as leaders not to unite to recognize it,” he said in English.

“Even countries that don’t claim as clearly as I think will always stand up to defend their territorial integrity and sovereignty.”

The conference comes as Canadian industry leaders seek to deepen ties with Indonesia, the world’s fourth most populous country with a booming economy.

Indonesia’s poverty rate fell from a quarter of the population at the turn of 2020 to 9.78% in 2020. Nearly two-thirds of the population of approximately 280 million are of working age.

But COVID-19 has slowed the country’s economic boom, and climate change threatens the world’s largest archipelago, where at least a third of the population is at risk of natural disasters.

Indonesia is a major emitter of greenhouse gases, and Canada is urging the government to strengthen conservation of tropical forests and peatlands. Ottawa has argued that Indonesia’s pursuit of economic development threatens its vast biodiversity.

Ottawa has twice negotiated a trade deal with Indonesia aimed at boosting $3.5 billion in annual bilateral trade.

In recent years, the exchange has been split almost evenly, with Canada mainly selling grains, fertilizers, wood pulp and oilseeds, and buying rubber, electrical equipment and apparel from Indonesia.

Canada played a key role in securing Indonesia’s independence from the Netherlands in 1949. Ottawa’s Ambassador to the United Nations at the time, General Andrew his General McNaughton, helped break the deadlock in negotiations between the two countries. Relations between Ottawa and Jakarta have been relatively smooth, aside from the human rights disputes and turmoil in East Timor in the 1990s.

In Bali, Chinese President Xi Jinping is scheduled to attend the G20 summit, but Prime Minister Trudeau has not indicated whether he would like to meet him. The summit comes as Canada’s Conservative Party calls for an investigation in China where he is reportedly interfering in the 2019 general election.

While attending the ASEAN summit, Trudeau made an announcement aimed at deepening ties with Southeast Asia against China.

He plans to meet with many government leaders during his stay in Indonesia, and his office confirmed his intention to meet directly with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for the first time.

Prime Minister Trudeau’s plane left Cambodia an hour and a half late on Monday. The delay postponed a planned meeting with Indonesian President Joko Widodo.

This report by the Canadian Press was first published on November 14, 2022.