Michaelle Jean, at helm of la Francophonie, says Canada can inspire Trump
OTTAWA — Stepping up Canadian engagement in multilateralism — including a United Nations peacekeeping mission to Africa — can set an example for the world that even U.S. president-elect Donald Trump might want to follow, says Michaelle Jean.
“I think Canada as a sovereign country has a very strong voice and we all realize and we can see how Canada wants its voice to be heard again,” the secretary-general of the International Organization of la Francophonie said in an interview with The Canadian Press.
“I’m hoping that actually maybe the new president of the United States will see this as an example with its closest neighbour and will be hopefully inspired by our position — I mean Canada’s position — in the world,” Jean, the former Canadian governor general, said from Paris.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau travels this week to Antananarivo, Madagascar, where la Francophonie is holding a leaders’ summit next weekend. The stop is part of Trudeau’s first visit to Africa since his Liberal government came to power last year.