Rideau Hall, Tuesday, April 8, 2014

It is a privilege and a pleasure to welcome you to Rideau Hall for this ceremony.

Might I also remark upon your sense of timing? Ambassadors Heyman and Nascimbene, you have both arrived in spring, at the end of what has been a wonderful—if at times rather long—Canadian winter!

This building in which we are gathered has been the official workplace and residence of every governor general since Confederation in 1867, and it is where conversations about Canada and the world take place.

You have been chosen to represent your respective nations, and to work with Canadians to solve problems and to seize opportunities. You understand the importance of our shared ties, and that strong international relationships are built on trust and respect.

You also recognize that trust is earned and renewed, or eroded, on a daily basis.

That is why I am so pleased to greet you here at Rideau Hall at the outset of your posting to Canada. This is a place for dialogue, so let us take this opportunity to pledge ourselves to communication and co-operation in the shared interests of our respective nations.

Ambassador Heyman, I am pleased to welcome you to Ottawa for this important posting. I understand your wife, Mrs. Vicky Simons Heyman, has deep family roots in Canada, and that you both have fond memories of your time here. Your familiarity with our country will no doubt serve you well in your new responsibilities. I am also certain that the range of experience you have acquired in your career has given you a breadth of knowledge from which to draw. I look forward to speaking with you about the important relationship between our two countries, and I wish you the very best as you make yourself at home here.

Canada and the United Sates enjoy a longstanding and close friendship that is of great benefit to our citizens. The relationship between our two countries is vast in scope and deep in nature. Through geography and inclination, we have forged extensive people-to-people ties. Our shared values and our long history of co-operation make us exceptional partners in North America and the world, and I look forward to our continued collaboration in future.

Ambassador Nascimbene, it is a pleasure to welcome you to Canada for this latest assignment in your long and distinguished diplomatic career. The depth of your foreign service experience and your facility with languages are most impressive. Your past work on Canada-Argentina bilateral relations makes you uniquely suited to this role. I wish you the very best as you settle into your new home and begin to discover all that Canada has to offer.

Canada and Argentina enjoy a productive relationship based on mutual respect and shared values. We also enjoy significant commercial ties. Together, our two countries share a mutual commitment to multilateralism, economic prosperity, democracy and nuclear non-proliferation. Canada hopes to build upon our partnership through continued dialogue and co-operation.

In today’s globalized, rapidly changing world, it is perhaps more important than ever for sovereign nations to commit to dialogue and diplomacy. On behalf of all Canadians, I welcome both of you to Canada in a spirit of partnership and respect. 

Let us work together for the smarter, more caring world of which we dream.

Thank you.