Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be in Singapore from Sep. 7 to 8, in between the Asean and G20 Summits.

Trains and Tims

Trudeau will be in Singapore to strengthen bilateral relations, and to promote Canadian exports and Canada as a place for Singaporean businesses to invest in.

Trudeau will be calling on Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Sep. 8, as well as several key private sector leaders.

The pair first met for a bilateral meeting as leaders in 2016, on the side lines of that year's G20 summit.

Singapore was Canada's largest destination in Southeast Asia for Canadian direct investment abroad in 2022.

Also in 2022, bilateral merchandise trade between the two countries was valued at S$2.9 billion.

One very Canadian brand is the doughnut and coffee chain Tim Hortons, due to open in VivoCity later in the year.

Canada and Singapore are also members of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

Summiting the summits

Trudeau's trip will be sandwiched between two major multilateral summits.

First up is the 43rd Asean Summit in Jakarta, from Sep. 5 to 6, which PM Lee will be attending.

The 43rd Asean Summit will be held under the Chairmanship of Indonesia, with the theme “ASEAN Matters: Epicentrum of Growth”.

Asean leaders will be discussing ways to ensure Asean's continued relavance and centrality in the evolving regional architecture, as well as regional and international developments, including developments in Myanmar.

Canada is due to participate in the Asean-Canada summit, one of many summits occurring between Asean and partner nations, including China, the U.S., India, Japan, South Korea, and Australia.

Canada will also be launching the Asean-Canada Strategic Partnership.

Then from Sep. 9 to 11, Canada will be participating at the G20 Summit in India.

Singapore, while not a member of the G20, has been invited to participate by host nation India, and has been participating in its various satellite summits throughout the year.

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Top image via Lee Hsien Loong/Facebook