11 September 2007
CANBERRA, AUSTRALIAPrime Minister Stephen Harper today issued the following statement at a joint news conference with Australian Prime Minister John Howard:
" Today marks the end of our week long visit Down Under.
I can’t say enough about the warmth and generosity of our hosts.
Prime Minister, thank-you for making Laureen and I feel so much at home.
Thanks to your gracious hospitality, our time in Australia has been as pleasant as it’s been productive.
And it had indeed been very productive.
We have significantly advanced Canada’s interests on several fronts.
Obviously, we’re pleased with the results of the APEC Summit.
We expanded the global campaign against climate change to include almost all the world’s major greenhouse gas emitters.
And we made progress on many other levels, on trade, on investment and on diplomatic relations.
In the end, that’s what these international tours are all about.
They’re about face to face contact, not just between leaders, but also between dozens of government officials, diplomats and senior business leaders.
Old friendships are renewed; new conversations are started;
Plans are made; agreements are signed.
On this last note, I’m pleased to say, Canada signed four significant agreements during our time here.
They include the youth work exchange program I referred to in my speech to Parliament;
A public service professional development exchange program;
An agreement to contribute to global action on climate change;
And a multi-faceted joint announcement with Australia that involves human rights promotion, demining and border control in Afghanistan.
Most importantly, however, we have renewed and strengthened the deep bond of friendship between Canada and Australia.
In fact, in many ways, I think they are stronger than ever before and I believe our countries are destined to grow closer and closer in the years ahead."
