The Honourable Maxime Bernier, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today agreed to assume the chairmanship of the Ministerial Conference of La Francophonie for the next two years. At the conclusion of his participation at the Conference, held in Vientiane, Laos, on November 20 and 21, the Minister outlined Canada’s priorities for this mandate with his counterparts in La Francophonie.

“In the coming months, Canada’s short-term focus will be on preparing for the next Francophonie Summit,” the Minister said. “We would like to host a summit that mirrors the real concerns of our citizens and focuses on concrete results.”

“Our primary objective is to show Canadians and the entire French-speaking world that La Francophonie is, above all, a citizens’ movement. The choice of topics to be debated at the summit will be of the utmost importance. We will finalize consultations with our partners in La Francophonie to outline the framework for the discussions that will be central to the meeting in Quebec City in 2008,” the Minister added.

“La Francophonie is an international organization that has done much to promote and strengthen French language and culture throughout the world. French language and culture have been at the core of the Canadian identity since our country was founded. Therefore, our government wholeheartedly supports efforts to foster the development of French-speaking communities in Canada. La Francophonie enables Canada to forge essential ties with other Francophone countries in the world,” he added.

Minister Bernier held a series of meetings with his counterparts to discuss other issues relevant to Canada’s foreign policy, including democracy, human rights and the rule of law.

In 2008, the eyes of the entire world will be on Canada. Prime Minister Harper will host the next summit in Quebec City from October 17 to 19, 2008, in partnership with his colleague Jean Charest, the Premier of Quebec. The summit will add to the celebrations surrounding the 400th anniversary of the founding of Quebec City, which effectively marked the birth of the Canadian state.

“We’ll see you in 2008!” concluded Minister Bernier.