Canada is a North American country which has the advantage of not being the United States. This is the business card that entrepreneurs here are invited to present if they want to follow in the footsteps of the federal government and invest in Asian countries other than China. This is the recommendation made by the former CEO of the National Bank, Louis Vachon, who knows the region well.
“In Asia, like everywhere else in the southern hemisphere, countries are looking for a balance between the powerhouses of China, Europe and the United States. This is an opportunity for Canada to increase its commercial relations in Asia. We are Americans, without the geopolitical baggage of the Americans”, summarizes in an interview with the To have to the Quebec leader now retired.
A semi-retired, since he continues to occupy his time by participating in the management of companies and organizations from various backgrounds. One such is the Canada-ASEAN Business Council, of which he became co-chairman alongside former Saskatchewan premier Brad Wall. The Council is preparing for the official inauguration of its office in Montreal around mid-December.
Quebec Inc. answers present
The stars are aligned awfully well these days for the commercial organization, which has existed more modestly for ten years. “ASEAN”, more often seen under the English acronym ASEAN, refers to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. It brings together a dozen countries that are at the heart of the new Indo-Pacific strategy published by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada, Mélanie Joly.
This is an opportunity for Canada to increase its commercial relations in Asia. We are Americans, without the geopolitical baggage of Americans.
Opening an office in Montreal is no coincidence. Casually, the presence in Southeast Asia of important members of Quebec inc. explains the roughly $32 billion in 2021 trade between the two partners. In 2012, the value of these exchanges was 5 billion, and they were practically non-existent ten years earlier.
National Bank has over the years become the largest Canadian employer there, with some 7,000 employees, mostly located in Cambodia. Alimentation Couche-Tard, Bombardier, CAE and the Caisse de depot et placement du Québec are also among the Quebec companies that have developed a significant presence in Southeast Asia.
“In my experience, when companies like this invest there, it’s always well received locally,” says Louis Vachon. We can bring in-valued expertise in sectors like finance, aerospace and clean energy. But obviously, you have to be well represented on site, because, as they say, out of sight, out of mind. »
The gateway to the G20
In the shadow of the G20 meeting, on November 13 and 14, also in Indonesia, the B20 was held, an international meeting of the business community attended by some twenty representatives of the Canadian economy, including representatives of the Canada-ASEAN Business Council.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau swept by the event. His visit was just long enough for him to announce his willingness to invest $750 million over ten years to strengthen commercial ties between Canada and the Indo-Pacific region and to “increase the reach and impact of the private sector Canadian” in the region.
“We are currently establishing new partnerships to help Canadian companies expand and access the region’s business networks,” said Justin Trudeau at a press conference. In the process, the governments of Canada and India announced the conclusion of an expanded agreement that will allow unlimited flights between the two countries. The limit was previously 35 flights per week.
Ottawa hopes to forge trade ties that will cement its new policy strategy for the Indo-Pacific region. In short, the objective is to create regional alliances with partners other than China without offending the autocratic giant, because this could constitute greater leverage in Canada-China relations in the event of other conflicts such as those that have arisen recently. months between the two countries.
The case of the leader of Huawei, Meng Wanzhou, and, more recently, that of the Chinese spy discovered within Hydro-Québec are two examples of the difficulty for Canada to develop relations with China.
Difficulties that will not disappear overnight, if they ever disappear, believes Louis Vachon. “The issue of industrial espionage is tricky everywhere, but China is particularly fierce about it,” he says. “Ottawa’s new policy has taken a long time to emerge, but it seems to be the right one. Canada has a place to take in Asia”, at the risk of offending China a little, concludes the businessman.