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Address by
Prime Minister Jean Chrétien
on the occasion
of a Berlin Team Canada 2002 Luncheon
February 19, 2002
Berlin, Germany
It is my great pleasure to introduce Team Canada 2002 to Germany.
This is the first time that Team Canada has come to Europe. We began by
breaking new ground for Canadian firms in the new Russia. Where the shackles of
the Cold War are being shattered in earnest. Where economic growth is strong.
Where freedom and free market reform are in full vigour.
This week we have come to the new Germany. Where the divisions of the Cold
War were once felt most sharply. And we begin our visit here, in the new Berlin.
For generations, this city was a depressing global monument to ideology in
conflict. In 12 short years, it has become a symbol of hope and reunification.
Families and friends, once separated from each other by a wall of fear and
ignorance, are now working as partners in the renewal of a single great nation.
We acknowledge the sacrifices that the people of Germany have made in this
common historic effort. And we congratulate you on your enormous achievements.
Team Canada is also about partnership. About Canadian governments and
entrepreneurs marshalling our resources to brand Canada as a business partner of
choice in the global economy of the 21 st
century.
Team Canada 2002 is a powerhouse. And I am honoured to be Captain. I am
joined by provincial and territorial leaders. And by more than 200 of our most
creative entrepreneurs from key sectors of the Canadian economy, many of them
global leaders.
We have come because we want to make a trade and investment relationship that
is already vibrant, even stronger. To explore and tap into opportunities made
possible by the position of Germany as an anchor of the European Union and of
Canada as the gateway to a NAFTA market of more than 400 million people.
But ours is a partnership of much more than business advantage.
It is a friendship based on family. More than three million Canadians count
Germany as their nation and culture of origin. One reason, no doubt, why Canada
is one of the most popular vacation choices for Germans.
It is also a friendship of shared values. Our commitment to freedom, human
rights and social justice. Our belief in progressive governance, that prosperity
and opportunity must be shared. And that this is best accomplished in federal
structures, through a partnership of citizens and the state.
On this firm foundation of shared values we have built a global partnership.
In NATO. At the U.N. In the OSCE. Our soldiers stand side by side, protecting
peace in the Balkans. And since September 11 th,
we have been in the forefront of the international campaign against terrorism.
The Chancellor and I spoke yesterday about plans for the G8 Summit in Canada
this year, in particular, our joint commitment to enhancing the quality of life
for the people of Africa. And I am pleased that Chancellor Schröder has
accepted my invitation to make his first official visit to Canada just prior to
the Summit.
Our global partnership also encompasses a resolute commitment to promoting
prosperity and social progress through liberalized trade. Our common support for
creating a fair and level playing field through a new WTO round is the most
recent proof of this.
We have both supported regional trade arrangements. Canada has the NAFTA. And
we are champions of a Free Trade Area of the Americas. Germany is a leading
force in the evolution of a dynamic European Union.
Canada and Germany have built a very healthy trade in goods, services,
investment and technology. Germany is our fourth largest trade and investment
partner. Our bilateral trade reached $11 billion dollars in 2000.
Canadian firms have invested over $4 billion in Germany. Canadian companies
have taken a lead role in investing in the New Laender and now employ thousands
of German workers. In return, six hundred German companies have made investments
in Canada that provide 95,000 jobs.
Not to sound greedy, ladies and gentlemen, but we can do better.
That is why Team Canada 2002 is here. To tap into potential that remains
unexplored. To raise the profile of Canada in Germany as a leading-edge,
technology-driven economy. To display the ample advantages that come with doing
business with Canada.
Canada is a proven market for German investors. Many of whom have joined us
today. A recent survey done by the Canadian-German Chamber of Industry and
Commerce found that 70 percent of its members are planning new investments in
Canada.
KPMG recently released a study naming Canada the most cost-effective country
in which to do business. It found that Canada offers the lowest after tax
business costs. As well as low energy, transportation, construction and overall
labour costs.
The Canadian advantage is also about how we are transforming Canada into a
hot bed of the new economy. Leading high-tech clusters can be found right across
the country.
They are well represented on Team Canada 2002: agri-food from Saskatoon,
multimedia from Halifax, fuel cells from Vancouver, biotechnology from Montreal
and Toronto, photonics from Ottawa. All are fine examples of Canadian technology
and Canadian entrepreneurship in search of global success.
The Canadian advantage is underpinned by the fundamental strength and
dynamism of our economy, which is extremely well-positioned to weather the
current global economic slowdown and to prosper in the recovery that will follow.
We have tabled five straight surplus budgets. And we are the only G8 nation
projected to weather the current slowdown without falling into deficit. Our
debt-to-GDP ratio has fallen faster than any other major industrialized nation.
Inflation remains low and stable. Interest rates are at a 40-year low.
We have implemented the largest tax cut in Canadian history, under which
corporate tax rates will fall about five percentage points below average U.S.
rates - a strong incentive for new investment in Canada. We have the most
generous R&D tax incentives in the world.
In the wake of September 11 th,
we have announced significant new strategic investments that will make our
shared border with the United States more secure and that will protect and
enhance the high volume and velocity of goods and services that make Canada such
an attractive point of entry to the NAFTA market.
And we will continue to make strategic investments that contribute to
building our long term economic strength. In building an advanced infrastructure
of knowledge and skills for our people. To ensure that Canada is the place where
new discoveries and processes get to market first, and fastest.
Indeed, we just unveiled a new Innovation and Skills strategy. A blueprint
for the future that covers areas such as skills, research and cluster
development.
Ladies and gentlemen, I am delighted that Team Canada 2002 has come to Berlin
and to Germany. Our message is simple.
We want you to think of Canada as a prime place to invest and do business.
With an investment and business climate that is among the best in the world.
February 19, 2002We want you to think of the Maple Leaf as a 21st century
trademark for excellence.
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