Thank you for the question.
I think the first thing to do is to focus on Canada's interests. That means identifying what matters most to Canada, not the regions.
In this regard, the alliance is important as an opportunity for our near-term prosperity. If there are four countries—or, to be correct, six countries—that would be concerned about Brazil, and alienating Brazil, it would be Chile, Peru, Colombia, and to some degree, Mexico. They've thought about this. They've discussed this. This is not an issue. They've made it absolutely clear that the alliance
is not against the client.
The alliance is not against any country. The alliance is simply a pragmatic response to an opportunity vis-à-vis Asia. For Canada, Brazil will be a decades-long project. The work that we've begun with Brazil will require constant effort.
The Canada-Brazil CEO Forum that the government has announced hasn't gone anywhere despite our best efforts. Despite our announcing our members of the council on time, Brazil just hasn't shown the interest to respond. We'll need a long-term effort with Brazil. The alliance does nothing to harm our relationship with Brazil. If it did, Chile, Peru, and Colombia would not have formed the alliance.
With respect to other countries, I'm not too worried what Nicaragua thinks about Canada or what Venezuela thinks about Canada. I'm worried about countries that are actually important to our prosperity and to our future in the hemisphere.