The Trudeau government wants a new trade pact with Southeast Asia. It won't be easy

In search of an Asia-Pacific strategy that doesn't rely on China, the Trudeau government has revived its push toward preferential trade with the 10 countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Landing a deal that isn't off-brand with the Liberal "progressive" trade agenda won't be easy.  This club includes several countries not so much embraced by Canada as barge-poled for their human rights records.

Nevertheless, when the House of Commons returns this week, International Trade Minister Mary Ng will table the government's notice of intent to reach a trade agreement. It's part of the more "transparent" approach to international treaty negotiations Liberals agreed to in the last Parliament after Opposition MPs complained about rushing through bills implementing deals they couldn't fully review.

If you're reading this and wondering what an "ASEAN" is, you're not alone.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau may be aware his government is about to spend its political capital negotiating with a bloc unfamiliar to many.

Taking audience questions about his foreign policy strategy at the Wilson Center in Washingon, D.C. Wednesday, Trudeau asked Ng to explain what was agreed to at her virtual summit with ASEAN leaders the night before — but then seemed to realize there could be people listening who couldn't list its members, let alone grasp its significance.

"It's going beyond just, you know, Japan and South Korea," Trudeau said, citing four ASEAN members — Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines — "for people who are following along at home."

The other six ASEAN members are Brunei, Cambodia, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.

Trudeau, his ministers and diplomats are trying to formulate and articulate a coherent strategy that counters China's influence in the Asia-Pacific. Closer trade ties with ASEAN, a market of 600 million people, could help.

But building political influence in this region has been complicated.

The times seemed simpler when Trudeau attended the ASEAN summit in Singapore in 2018 as a "dialogue partner" and suggested negotiations could start the following spring.

Back then, Canada had a reputation to repair with Pacific Rim partners like Japan and Australia after the bumpy ride to ratification of the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) without the U.S. 

Simultaneously, Canada was scoping out a trade negotiation with China itself — an idea that's now thoroughly on the back burner.

Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou hadn't been arrested in Vancouver yet. Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor were still free and living their lives in China.