Late last year, Ottawa announced its long-awaited strategy for the region that included C$2.3 billion spending to boost military and cyber security, and a plan to deal with what it called a "disruptive" China.
"By beginning formal negotiations with Taiwan towards a Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Arrangement, we are working to secure new opportunities for investment to support sustainable growth, establish new collaborations, and ensure good, well-paying jobs," Ng said in the statement. Trade between Canada and Taiwan totaled C$10.2 billion in 2021, up from C$7.4 billion in 2020, according to official figures. Tensions between China and Canada soared in late 2018 when Canadian police detained a Huawei Technologies executive, followed by the arrest of two Canadians in China on spying charges. All three were freed in 2021 but relations remain strained. (Reporting by Dan Whitcomb and Ismail Shakil Editing by Mark Heinrich)