Today, the Honourable Maninder Sidhu, Minister of International Trade, spoke with Cristina A. Roque, Secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry of the Philippines.
Minister Sidhu and Secretary Roque discussed the continued growth of the Canada-Philippines trade relationship, building on enduring people-to-people ties, as highlighted by the launch of a Vancouver-Manila Air Canada route in April 2025. They noted the importance of increasing opportunities and support to businesses and workers in the 2 countries and promoting free trade.
The Minister and Secretary reaffirmed Canada's commitment to accelerating the pace of negotiations for an Association of Southeast Asian Nations-Canada free trade agreement to make as much progress as possible this year. They also committed to advancing the exploratory discussions on a potential Canada-Philippines free trade agreement, with the hopes to begin negotiations soon.
