German foreign minister Heiko Maas to visit Canada

August 12, 2019 - Ottawa, Ontario - Global Affairs Canada

The Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today announced she will welcome Heiko Maas, Germany’s Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs, to Canada from August 13 to 15, 2019.

The Minister will host her German counterpart for bilateral meetings in Toronto, Ontario, to discuss strengthening the close ties between Canada and Germany. Their discussions will cover a range of topics, including a shared commitment to democracy, human rights, fighting climate change, multilateralism, rules-based trade, non-proliferation efforts and other peace and security issues.

While in Toronto, the two ministers will participate in an armchair discussion on defending liberal democracy in the 21st century and also visit the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence.

Minister Maas will then visit Iqaluit and Pond Inlet in Nunavut. He will be accompanied by Arctic, climate change and multilateral security experts from the Alfred Wegener Institute, the Max Planck Institute, and the German Institute of Global and Area Studies. While in Nunavut, he will meet with Premier Joe Savikataaq, as well as local communities and climate change experts.

Quotes

“Canada and Germany share values and priorities, and that is why it is so important for us to continue working closely together. Countries like ours need to take more of a leadership role, and, together, find creative and effective ways to do so. It is a tremendous pleasure to welcome my good friend Heiko Maas to Canada so we can continue this essential work.”

- Hon. Chrystia Freeland, P.C., M.P., Minister of Foreign Affairs

Quick facts

Germany and Canada are important friends and allies in the G7, G20, NATO, United Nations and other multilateral organizations.
Germany and Canada share strong cultural connections, with more than 3.3 million Canadians—almost 10% of Canada’s population—claiming some German ancestry. About a million Canadians and Germans travel to the other country each year.
Canada and Germany have a long history of working together in multilateral institutions. For example, they helped to create the International Criminal Court, which in 2018 celebrated its 20th anniversary.
Germany is Canada’s largest export market in the EU and sixth-largest trading partner globally.
Canadian and German companies are benefiting from the Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), which entered into provisional application on September 21, 2017, with all economically significant parts of the agreement (tariffs, origin and tariff-rate quotas, services commitments, temporary entry commitments, government procurement obligations) in force.
Canada is home to more than 800 artificial intelligence (AI) companies, and the number of Canadian AI start-ups is growing by approximately 28% year over year.

Associated links

Canada-Germany relations

Contacts

Adam Austen
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs
[email protected]

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