Thank you very much for the question.
In my statement and in the recommendations that I've made, I point out that there's a lot that Canada can do, including when it comes to energy. We are a middle power, but we are actually much more than a middle power. We're the 10th largest economy. We can be doing more and punching way above our weight in the region.
Energy is one thing, and there are things like AI, quantum.... What I'm trying to say is that we're not as vulnerable as some of our partners. Japan, Australia and others trade much more with China and are much more integrated into the Chinese supply chain in the region, so they are much more open to coercion.
Only about 5% of our exports go to China. We're trying to deepen that, but we have to recognize that we are not as vulnerable to coercion as Japan, Australia and others in the region. Therefore, we need to be much more confident, show up with confidence, understand what our strengths are—energy, both conventional and clean energy, as well as niche technology.
Quantum is an area in which we can really be leading right now, and there's a lot of appetite in the region to engage with us, with AI, critical minerals.... My point is that, yes, it's a challenging moment in which we have to do multiple things at once, but we should also really lean into our strengths and make sure that our friends are with us.
The conversation shouldn't be just about China. China is an important actor, but we should be doing a lot more with Japan, a lot more with Australia. I'm delighted to say that, in the last year, there has been much more strategic engagement with Australia than ever before. We might be strategic cousins, but we're not yet strategic partners, and that's something that needs to change right away.
In short, I would say that the tension is there, but Canada is in a much better position than we give ourselves credit for.