3 June 2007
Ottawa, OntarioPrime Minister Stephen Harper today announced that he will participate in both the Canada-EU Summit in Berlin, Germany on June 4 and the G8 Summit taking place in Heiligendamm from June 6 to 8. While in Berlin, the Prime Minister will also deliver a speech to key German and Canadian business and science leaders. The Prime Minister will also have bilateral discussions on June 5 in Paris with French President Nicolas Sarkozy and French Prime Minister François Fillion.
"This is an important opportunity to promote Canada's interests, values and successes on the world stage," said the Prime Minister. "From highlighting Canada's strong economic performance to discussing commitments in Afghanistan, these meetings will focus on global issues that also really hit home."
The Canada-EU Summit will be hosted by the President of the Council of the European Union and Chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel. The President of the European Commission, José Manuel Barroso, and the EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, Javier Solana, will also participate, together with other ministers and commissioners. The Honourable John Baird, Minister of the Environment, will be a member of the Canadian delegation.
Canada is one of six designated strategic partners of the EU, along with the United States, China, Japan, Russia and India. Canada and the EU work together to promote international security and effective multilateralism, to combat transnational crime and terrorism, to build global and transatlantic economic prosperity, and to collaborate on tackling global and regional issues such as sustainable fisheries, the threat of pandemics, and the socio-economic implications of globalization.
The G8 Summit will also be chaired by Germany, and will focus on the theme of growth and responsibility in the world economy, a topic that includes climate change, and on development in Africa.
The G8 is an informal group of eight industrialized countries: Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States. The European Union also participates and is represented by the President of the European Commission and by the leader of the country that holds the presidency of the Council of the European Union at the time of the G8 Summit - this year, Germany. At this Summit, Leaders from Brazil, China, India, Mexico, South Africa, other African nations and heads of international organizations have also been invited to meet with the G8 Leaders.
