Okay.
After many months, we recently secured on-site virtual consular access to Mr. Kovrig and Mr. Spavor. This is something that I personally raised in a meeting with my counterpart, State Councillor Wang Yi, in Rome in August of this year, and on which we worked tirelessly.
Like many Canadians, we are alarmed by the reports of flagrant human rights violations in Xinjiang. I discussed this issue directly with my Chinese counterpart just recently in Rome, this summer, at a meeting I called.
This is something I've also raised directly with Michelle Bachelet, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. The concerns we have are shared by many around the world. Multilateralism is key to ensuring global stability and security in a world in which China is a powerful actor. This is why we are working with like-minded countries to defend the rules-based international order and ensure that China abides by its international obligations.
We are committed to developing new international frameworks and conventions that respond to today's challenges. One example is the successful conclusion of talks for the Canada-United Kingdom Trade Continuity Agreement, which was led by my very able colleague Minister Ng. This agreement will provide stability and predictability for businesses, exporters and workers in Canada and the United Kingdom. The pandemic highlights the importance of ensuring that supply chains remain open and that air travel is not altered for essential goods and services.
Canada is also committed to strengthening the world's institutions in order to strengthen global stability and respond to emerging threats. We have continued to engage partners and allies on the critical situation in Venezuela through our work in the Lima Group and continued high-level engagement with President Guaidó. Over the last several months, we have also witnessed the eruption of multiple political crises around the world. I will not be able to name all of them, but let me mention several situations of concern.
In Lebanon, in the wake of August's tragedy in Beirut, Canada immediately provided $30 million in humanitarian aid, and I personally travelled there. We continue to follow very closely the situation on the ground. We will continue to support the Lebanese people in the months to come.
When it comes to Belarus, we have rejected the results of the fraudulent presidential election in Belarus and continue to call for free and fair elections. Alongside allies, we have imposed three sets of sanctions against government officials of Belarus, and urge the government of Belarus to find a negotiated solution that respects the will of the people.
Now let me move to Nagorno-Karabakh.
We continue to work with our allies within the OSCE Minsk Group on finding a sustainable resolution in Nagorno-Karabakh.
I know that this committee has been briefed by my departmental officials on the region and on export permits. As you know, we have suspended a number of export permits to Turkey following the allegations that equipment sold by a Canadian company is being used in Nagorno-Karabakh. The export permits have been suspended in line with Canada’s robust export control regime, which is one of the world's more rigorous. We will continue to carefully scrutinize export permits to ensure that they are consistent with our legal obligations and the protection of human rights and international humanitarian laws.
Now let me move a bit further east, to Hong Kong.
We were the first to suspend our extradition treaty with Hong Kong. We announced a series of other steps in reaction to China imposing the National Security Law on Hong Kong.
Finally, Mr. Chair, let me turn to the tragedy of PS752. As we get close to the first anniversary of the downing, our thoughts remain with the families and friends of the victims. Our commitment to supporting the families of the victims to get all the answers they deserve is a priority for me and our government. To that end, we continue to stand firm for transparency, accountability, justice and reparation for the families of the victims. We also continue to lead the work of the international coordination group, which Canada founded, that includes the U.K., Ukraine, Sweden and Afghanistan. We will not rest until we see justice served and those responsible held to account.
In conclusion, the events of 2020 have demonstrated the importance of Canada's foreign policy. Today COVID-19 shows us that our fate is deeply intertwined with that of the community of nations. Tomorrow we know that the defining challenges of our time will only be solved through collective action on a scale never witnessed before.
As some countries turn away from the world and retreat to nationalist self-interest, we instead hold on to a different belief—the conviction that co-operation, partnership and multilateralism will carry the day. These beliefs have always underpinned Canada's relationship to the world. They will be guiding us as we face the challenges in the months and years to come and work to reform and strengthen the international order for generations to follow, to ensure security, stability and prosperity for all.
Mr. Chair, I'm happy to take questions. If you will allow me just 30 seconds to solve a technical issue at our end, we'll be ready to go.