Thank you very much.
Thank you so much for being here. It's been extremely interesting listening to you and hearing your own perspective of what's going on in China. I'm very glad to hear that you are a big believer in the culture as well.
As somebody who has been involved with culture here in Canada, I really believe in cross-laterally talking with people, bringing in plays, ballets and things like this, so thank you for your efforts.
I do want to talk about a December 2019 editorial by the current and former presidents of the International Crisis Group. They said the following about their colleague, Mr. Kovrig:
Although China has never spelled out the reasons for Michael's imprisonment, it is clear that he is merely a pawn in a larger geopolitical game.
At the same time, they cautioned against the adoption of “a far more aggressive approach toward China” and noted:
...Beijing has a critical role to play not only in its own Asian neighborhood but elsewhere as well, including in preventing, mitigating and resolving deadly conflict—across the globe from Central Asia to the Korean Peninsula, from Afghanistan to Venezuela, from Sudan to Zimbabwe.
As ambassador, can you please explain to us why engagement is the best approach to managing bilateral and multilateral relations with China?