The Universal Postal Union (UPU) is meeting in Istanbul this month to set the rates for the years 2018 - 2021.
When your parcel is shipped to, say, France, this is the body that arranges the treaty that pays France to deliver it.
At the end of a year, Canada and France do some very fancy bookkeeping and decide if one owes the other any money for cooperating on this.
The big irritant has been the amazingly low rates of China Post for international shipping.
An international letter from China can be sent for 45 cent USD.
https://www.travelchinaguide.com/essential/postal-service/rate.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Postal_Union
There was some thought that the meeting would be held off because of the so-called coup attempt, but I guess postmen are big risk takers.
