Some Japanese people have told us that it is a choice made by our government and by a certain number of Canadians. They are concerned, for example, about the abolition of the Canadian Wheat Board. They have wondered for some time about how their supply is going to be guaranteed. They have a horror of change; they do not like the unexpected. For Japanese people, the unexpected is their worst nightmare. They like to be sure.
When changes happen that they do not expect, or that they are not told about, they will go right into their shells. While these negotiations with Japan were rolling along nicely, a member of the Japan-Canada Chamber of Commerce, who recruits students for Canadian universities, arrived at the Canadian embassy in Tokyo. That's when he saw that all the consular services had been closed and the services needed to get visas or to complete various formalities would be available online in nine months. Otherwise, he could go to the Philippines or Singapore.
The Japanese are excellent potential partners because their agriculture complements Canada's very well and we are not in competition with their rice. My impression is that, if they see us doing things that are too strange, they will take their sweet time in signing an agreement with us. What is your impression?