OTTAWA -- Tending neighborly relations, President Clinton dedicated a new embassy, agreed on exchanging military technology and went golfing with Canada's prime minister Friday. He met briefly with Quebec's separatist premier but said the United States values "a strong and united Canada."

　Full of praise for his hosts on his one-day visit, Clinton said, "We look to you. We learn from you."

　Besides the technology agreement, Clinton and Prime Minister Jean Chretien talked about trade, nuclear proliferation and peacekeeping in East Timor.

　At the dedication of the embassy - a rectangular glass-and-chrome structure adjacent to Parliament and Canada's national museum of art - Clinton warmed the crowd with a few words in French.

　"Je suis chez moi au Canada," he said, meaning "I am at home in Canada."

　Later, Clinton and Chretien headed to a new ski resort in Quebec's Mont Treblant area, about 90 miles north of Montreal, for a conference on federalism - and an afternoon of golf.

　At the federalism conference, Clinton spent about 15 minutes privately with Quebec's premier, Lucien Bouchard. An administration official said they had "a friendly, informal chat" in which the subject of sovereignty in Quebec never came up.

　Clinton's speech at the conference was laced with strong defenses of federalism. He said it is better for nations to work out problems with unhappy segments of their societies than to allow those factions to break away.

　"Where there are dissatisfied groups in sections of countries, we should be looking for ways to satisfy anxieties and legitimate complaint without disintegration, I believe," Clinton said.

　He did not make direct reference to Quebec, a French-speaking province of 7 million that is frustrated with the Canadian federal system and, in 1995, came close to voting to split away. Bouchard's government, dedicated to independence, was re-elected less than a year ago.

　Instead, Clinton cited East Timor as an example, saying that region now faces tremendous difficulties because it broke away from Indonesia.

　"Does that mean they were wrong? No. Under the circumstances they faced, they probably made the only decision they could have," Clinton said. "But wouldn't it have been better if they could have found their religious, their cultural, their ethnic and their economic footing in genuine self-government in the framework of a larger entity, which would also have supported them economically?"

　And he heaped praise on Chretien's administration, saying the diversity reflected in Canada's culture and government was a tribute to "what democracy must be about."

　"In the United States, we have valued our relationship with a strong and united Canada," Clinton said. "We look to you. We learn from you."

　The president paid his fifth visit to Canada at the invitation of Chretien, who said he wanted Clinton to address the federalism conference because he has been both a national and a state leader. It was the 23rd time Clinton and Chretien have met since Clinton took office in 1993.

　The Quebec issue did not come up during their latest discussion, Clinton told reporters after their meeting, and Chretien broke off questions on the subject with a curt "Thank you. Next?" Clinton went on to say U.S. policy is unchanged.

　The defense technology agreement preserves license-free access to defense and aerospace technology, and allows for easier exchange of technical data. It seeks to allay U.S. concern over the potential export of American defense secrets.

　"It's always important, when you have a problem, to find a solution," Chretien said. "And we found a solution. That's all."

　 (Reuters)