Joe Biden in Canada | A busy menu

Between the time Air Force One lands on the tarmac at Ottawa airport on Thursday evening and Friday’s reception at the Aviation and Space Museum, Joe Biden will have spent just over 24 hours on Canadian soil for his first official visit. We have not yet announced the menu for the dinner, which will be attended by a few hundred guests, but that of the conversations between the president and his host Justin Trudeau, he already promises to be hearty. Appetizer.

(Ottawa) Roxham Road

“We may have something to announce. On the eve of the arrival of his American guest, Justin Trudeau did not want to open his game any further, except to say a little later that “for Americans, the perspective on border protection is very different compared to on the southern border […] versus the northern border. We work with them to reassure them, to establish something that could work for them [et pour le Canada] “. Quebec Premier Francois Legault and Official Opposition Leader in Ottawa Pierre Poilievre are calling for the road to be locked – 32 days ago on Thursday Mr Poilievre had summoned Justin Trudeau to “shut it down” in a period of 30 days.

foreign interference

Without naming China, Canadian government sources said “threats to democracy” would be on the agenda. According to the leader of the Bloc Québécois, Yves-François Blanchet, the tenant of the White House will need to be reassured by his neighbor to the north, because he “seems to have something to hide” , he accused during question period in the House on Wednesday. According to Vincent Rigby, former national security adviser to Justin Trudeau, Canadian shortcomings were not lost on Mr. Biden. The Prime Minister will therefore have to “promise that Canada will put its own house in order regarding the activities of hostile states”, he wrote in an open letter published on Wednesday in the Globe and Mail.

Crisis in Haiti

The Biden administration has been trying to convince the Trudeau government for several months to take command of an international intervention mission to put an end to the chaos in Haiti. Canada advocates instead to “help Haitians find solutions for themselves,” Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly reiterated on Wednesday. Among the pillars of the Canadian approach are the strengthening of the Haitian National Police, increasingly battered, and the imposition of sanctions. In the first case, Washington is contributing to the problem with its migration program, which police officers use to leave the country with blood and fire; in the second, the United States can do more, we whisper behind the scenes in Ottawa. Because money, the sinews of gang warfare, is much more in Miami than in Montreal.

BuyAmerican

Washington’s protectionist policies continue to cause insomnia in Ottawa, despite the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement during Donald Trump’s reign. The Trudeau government is stepping up pressure to ensure that the Biden administration does not exclude Canadian companies in its stimulus plans. During his State of the Union address in February, the President indicated that he intended to adopt new standards for construction materials used in federal infrastructure projects to be made in the United States. In the Commons on Thursday, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre accused Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of failing to adequately defend Canada’s interests in the face of a protectionist administration. He recalled that the softwood lumber dispute between Canada and the United States remains unresolved after seven years. Poilievre will also meet with the president during his visit, senior US administration officials confirmed at a technical briefing on Wednesday.

Climatic changes

The situation has changed in the fight against climate change since the accession of Joe Biden to the White House. Collaboration is essential between the two countries in order to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and accelerate the energy transition. The United States is committed to reducing GHG emissions by 50% to 52% by 2030, compared to 2005. Canada’s goal is to reduce them by 40% to 45% during the same period. The Biden administration has also announced colossal investments of US$370 billion as part of theInflation Reduction Act to support projects aimed at combating climate change and accelerating the energy transition. The Trudeau government intends to unveil its response to these investments in its next budget, which will be presented next Tuesday.

NORAD Modernization

Whether Democrat or Republican, the President of the United States wants Canada to do its part in defense matters. Joe Biden also intends to discuss the modernization of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) to better ensure the defense of the North American continent during his stay in Ottawa. The incident of the Chinese spy balloon which was shot down by the US military over the Atlantic Ocean last month after flying over part of the territory of Canada and the United States makes this file even more topical. . Canada has already committed to investing $4.9 billion over six years in modernizing NORAD. The United States, however, is maintaining pressure on Canada to further increase its military spending in order to meet the target of 2% of its GDP, as recommended by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). . Last year, Canada spent the equivalent of 1.27% of its GDP on defence, according to NATO calculations.