Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau and US President, Donald Trump struck a conciliatory and amiable note following their meetings on Monday. They pointed out the unique nature of the relationship between Canada and the US, and the importance of continued trade across a secure but shared border.
The two also issued a joint statement before their shared news conference, suggesting that the first face-to-face meetings between them had been a success. Trump declared that the US is fortunate to have Canada as a neighbor and that the two nations have shared values, bonds, and a love of freedom. The two countries have agreed to try to improve trade and labor mobility across the border between their nations, as well as develop infrastructure projects in Canada and the US.
Some critics had been hoping that the Canadian Prime Minister would raise the issue of Trump’s new actions on immigration, which have been highly controversial. But that did not happen, and Trudeau has stated before that Canadians do not expect their Prime Minister to go to another country and lecture them on the way they choose to govern themselves.
His comments were echoed by Ian Lee, a professor at Ottawa’s Sprott School of Business at Carleton University. He noted that those expecting Trudeau to criticize the US President on his controversial immigration stance had a profound misunderstanding of both the role of the Canadian Prime Minister and of history.