HeB次元官网网址檚 hell-bent on restoring blue-collar American manufacturing to its former glory, considers free trade a dirty word and wants Canada to wade voluntarily into a failed, gang-ravaged state thatB次元官网网址檚 a quagmire waiting to happen.
To be sure, Joe Biden is no Donald Trump. But he doesnB次元官网网址檛 always make it obvious.
The U.S. president arrives in Ottawa tonight on a whirlwind 24-hour visit B次元官网网址� a significantly less elaborate itinerary than first envisioned in the Prime MinisterB次元官网网址檚 Office B次元官网网址� two full years since becoming commander-in-chief.
B次元官网网址淭his will be the first true, in-person bilateral meeting between the two leaders in Canada since 2009,B次元官网网址� said White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby.
The first year of BidenB次元官网网址檚 term focused on rebuilding Canada-U.S. relations following TrumpB次元官网网址檚 divisive term in office. The second focused on meeting obligations, B次元官网网址渋ncluding prioritizing orderly and safe migration through regular pathways,B次元官网网址� Kirby said.
B次元官网网址淣ow, heading into the third, this visit is about taking stock of what weB次元官网网址檝e done, where we are and what we need to prioritize for the future.B次元官网网址�
While heB次元官网网址檚 far less undiplomatic and publicly combative than his both-barrels predecessor, BidenB次元官网网址檚 first two years in the Oval Office produced more than enough political headaches for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
FridayB次元官网网址檚 meetings may not offer much remedy.
High on CanadaB次元官网网址檚 wish list will be frank talk on Buy American, the age-old protectionist doctrine resurrected by every 21st-century president short of George W. Bush and one of BidenB次元官网网址檚 favourite domestic political messages.
B次元官网网址淭he president is very committed to policies that create jobs in the United States, and we donB次元官网网址檛 take issue with that policy,B次元官网网址� said Kirsten Hillman, CanadaB次元官网网址檚 ambassador to the U.S.
B次元官网网址淲hat we say is B次元官网网址� when you apply it to Canada and deeply integrated Canada supply chains, it does not serve your policy purpose. It does the exact opposite.B次元官网网址�
Fully 60 per cent of the physical goods that Canada sells stateside B次元官网网址済o into the manufacturing of other products,B次元官网网址� and much the same is true of what Canada buys from the U.S., she added.
B次元官网网址淪o if we start carving each other out of our supply chains, the economic impact on jobs in our own country is going to be enormous. WeB次元官网网址檙e shooting ourselves in the foot, essentially B次元官网网址� both countries.B次元官网网址�
Canada is also likely to be playing defence on Haiti, the impoverished, quake-ravaged Caribbean nation on the island of Hispaniola that has devolved into a failed state since the 2021 assassination of president Jovenel Mo茂se.
Roving gangs of marauders now control more than half of Port-au-Prince, the capital city of a country in the grips of a cholera outbreak with little access to medical help, a near-total lack of public security and a powerless interim government.
The Biden administration, its hands full with RussiaB次元官网网址檚 war in Ukraine, the rise of China and other great-power concerns, wants Canada B次元官网网址� home to a large diaspora of French-speaking Haitians, mostly in Quebec B次元官网网址� to take a lead role.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a fair amount of pressure,B次元官网网址� said Carleton University professor Stephen Saideman. B次元官网网址淭he reality is that Trudeau doesnB次元官网网址檛 want to do this, and so he comes up with whatever arguments he can to deflect this.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淚 am hopeful B次元官网网址� that Canada will be able to step in and take some leadership in Haiti, because that will matter in Washington,B次元官网网址� said Gordon Giffin, who served as Bill ClintonB次元官网网址檚 envoy to Ottawa from 1997 to 2001.
B次元官网网址淭aking that one off of our menu would be a big help to the U.S. administration.B次元官网网址�
Though it might seem simplistic at the highest levels of intergovernmental relations, the quid pro quo approach is foundational to how countries get along and manage various irritants in the relationship, he suggested.
B次元官网网址淚 do think itB次元官网网址檚 a prototypical example of the United States saying, B次元官网网址榃e need you to help us out on this one,B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址� Giffin told a panel hosted by the Americas Council and the Council of the Americas.
He recalled the frequent interactions between his old boss and Jean Chr茅tien, who was prime minister while Clinton was in the White House and a man Giffin described as B次元官网网址渢he consummate dealmaker.B次元官网网址�
Chr茅tien B次元官网网址渓ooked for places where Bill Clinton needed a little bit of help,B次元官网网址� Giffin said.
B次元官网网址淚 would very quickly hear, B次元官网网址極K, weB次元官网网址檙e going to do this, Gordon, but for that, I need this,B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址� he said in his best Chr茅tien drawl. B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 sorry, thatB次元官网网址檚 just human nature, and itB次元官网网址檚 part of the deal.B次元官网网址�
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby would not say Wednesday whether Biden intends to make a direct demand of Trudeau on Haiti.
B次元官网网址淭hey share a concern about the dire situation down there from a security and humanitarian perspective B次元官网网址� this is not something that is unfamiliar to either the prime minister or the president,B次元官网网址� Kirby said.
B次元官网网址淎s for a multinational force or anything like that, I donB次元官网网址檛 want to get ahead of the conversation here. But as weB次元官网网址檝e said before, if thereB次元官网网址檚 a need for that, if thereB次元官网网址檚 a place for that, thatB次元官网网址檚 all going to have to be worked out directly with the Haitian government and with the UN.B次元官网网址�
Kirby also played down expectations on another big Canadian ask: renegotiating the Safe Third Country Agreement, a 2004 treaty between the two countries that many blame for a recent spike in irregular migration.
On issues of migration, B次元官网网址渨eB次元官网网址檙e well aware of Canadian concerns. We have concerns of our own,B次元官网网址� Kirby said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a hemispheric, shared regional challenge. So I have no doubt that theyB次元官网网址檒l discuss it.B次元官网网址�
Senior government officials in Ottawa say the discussion on Haiti will involve the two leaders, but not Haitians themselves. Trudeau has so far focused on sanctions, helping Haitian authorities with surveillance support to track gang activity, and building a political consensus on how the West can best help.
Saideman, who has previously worked with the U.S. Department of Defense, said Ottawa is trying to avoid that at all costs. B次元官网网址淭his government does not want to suffer tremendous costs or cement tremendous risks.B次元官网网址�
He noted that CanadaB次元官网网址檚 largest deployment is currently in Latvia and Ottawa has agreed to expand its presence to shore up that countryB次元官网网址檚 border with Russia.
Saideman said it would be impossible to expand that force while leading an intervention in Haiti, particularly because each deployed unit generally requires a second unit undergoing training and a third recovering from the previous rotation.
In addition, gang violence would be significantly more risky than past missions aimed at preventing clashes between warring armies, such as in Bosnia or Cyprus.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 not saying we shouldnB次元官网网址檛 do it, but I can see why the government is cautious about it,B次元官网网址� said Saideman, who is director of the Canadian Defence and Security Network.
B次元官网网址淚n Haiti, this has not been the first rodeo,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淭he previous missions didnB次元官网网址檛 fix things, didnB次元官网网址檛 lead to a lasting solution.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址擩ames McCarten, The Canadian Press
