Carney to Attend G20 Summit in South Africa, With Stop in UAE

Prime Minister Mark Carney will be attending the G20 Leaders’ Summit in South Africa later this month, where he will be looking to boost trade and investment in Canada.

Carney will first travel to the United Arab Emirates for a bilateral visit and then participate in the G20 leaders’ summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, from November 18 to Nov. 24, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a Nov. 12 release.

At the G20 summit, Carney will “meet with leaders across business and government and underscore opportunities to increase investment and trade with Canada,” the release says.

While in the UAE, the PMO says Carney will meet with the UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi and discuss the two countries’ partnership in sectors like energy, agriculture, infrastructure.

Carney’s trip comes as trade talks with the United States have remained stalled since Oct. 23, when U.S. President Donald Trump said he was ending all negotiations with Canada due to an anti-tariff TV ad aired by the province of Ontario. Canada has been subject to 35 percent tariffs on all goods not exempted under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement as well as higher sectoral duties and tariffs on steel, aluminum, copper, softwood lumber, and certain auto parts.

In an Oct. 22 speech, Carney said Canada plans to double its non-U.S. exports by 2035, amid the ongoing trade dispute with the United States.

“Many of our former strengths—based on close ties to America—have become our vulnerabilities,” Carney said during his televised remarks.

Carney said the upcoming summit in South Africa represents an opportunity for Canada to grow its export market with closer ties to the global economy, particularly in boosting partnerships in energy, trade, and defence.

This is South Africa’s first time hosting the G20 Leaders’ Summit, and the first G20 summit held on the African continent. It will also be Carney’s first visits to the UAE and South Africa as prime minister, and his first time taking part in the summit.

Canada’s two-way trade amounted to $3.4 billion last year with the UAE and $2.91 billion with South Africa, according to the PMO.

Carney has had several international trips in the past month, most recently for a series of meetings in the Indo-Pacific region from Oct. 24-Nov. 1, including the ASEAN summit in Malaysia, APEC conference in South Korea, and bilateral working visit in Singapore.

Carney’s Indo-Pacific visit aimed at diversifying Canada’s trade portfolio and engaging in closer ties with leaders in the region.

Speaking Oct. 30 before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development, Minister of Foreign Affairs Anita Anand said Canada must “ensure that our foreign policy is responsive to Canada’s needs now,” including by increasing LNG exports to the Indo-Pacific and meeting Carney’s goal of doubling non-U.S. exports in the next decade.