In addition to the trade talks, the two leaders pledged to double bilateral trade by 2025 and announced a pair of breakthroughs in agriculture.
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But he calmly addressed head-on the issue of capital punishment in his country.
“We’ve agreed to launch exploratory talks towards a potential free trade agreement between Canada and China”, Trudeau said. Human rights advocates oppose this, citing what they say is a flawed Chinese justice system.
The Globe and Mail is reporting taxpayers were billed more than $200,000 in moving expenses for two of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s top aides.
Li arrived in Canada late Wednesday and visited informally with Trudeau at the prime minister’s retreat at Harrington Lake. China is Canada’s second-largest trading partner after the United States, with trade a year ago exceeding C$85 billion (S$87.7 billion).
Canada and China had a mixed relationship over the past decade under the previous Conservative administration. ICE Canada canola futures RSv1 rose 1.4 percent, touching the day’s highs after news of the agreement.
HSBC Canada chief economist David Watt said China has been looking to create closer ties with the West as it undergoes a massive reform process, however there had been some reluctance from Canada due to the challenges of adapting to the rapidly changing Chinese market.
Trudeau has acknowledged that the two countries are engaged in a high-level security dialogue, including the establishment of a controversial extradition treaty.
Tory opposition leader Rona Ambrose linked the issue of extradition to concerns about Chinese hacking and a recent revelation that Chinese agents are active in Canada, while criticising China as “a country whose justice system has one of the worst human rights records in the world”.
“We are going to continue to have frank, honest discussions about the things that matter to our people and to the global community at large”, Trudeau said.
Li also praised the new security dialogue, saying it would help the two countries address “differences”.
Li and Trudeau appeared at ease with each other.
A photo released by the Prime Minister’s Office showed the two leaders lounging in the back yard with glasses of beer while one of Trudeau’s kids hammed it up in the background on a trampoline.
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The two apologized for the controversy surrounding the moving expenses since revealed by the government earlier this week.
