Canada-Japan is a great story to tell in the last half-century. I think the potential for the next half-century is even brighter if you look at how our respective geopolitical situations have evolved.
As I mentioned, these kinds of visits are quite important. The next one with Minister Sidhu and Minister McGuinty is a mission that will be focusing on these areas of high technology and potential defence industry collaboration, and these are the right things to be doing. The challenge will be to do that in a sustained way and then do the work at home as we go often and consistently to Japan at a high level and invite high-level visitors from Japan to Canada.
Let's keep in mind the 100th anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic relationship is in 2028. On the Japanese side, they're already focused on this. I think we could be looking at some high-level visitors from Japan.
On the Canadian side, we should make the most of that and continue to build, but, at the same time, we have to do that work at home on the investment climate and get a good outcome from the North American market negotiations and continue to build the facts on the ground to support the case for Canada as the preferred destination.
I'm gratified to see after the last year that there is a realization among Canadians of the role that the Japanese auto companies, two in particular, have played as the largest assemblers of vehicles in Canada by far. That was not so much in the public consciousness, say, two years ago, the way it is today. They're good corporate citizens, and we definitely would do well to get more of that.