After meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump and other top Washington officials, Canada鈥檚 foreign affairs minister said Monday that she sees enthusiasm for speeding up trade across the Canada-U.S. border.
Chrystia Freeland, the Liberals鈥� lead on Canada-U.S. trade, told CTV鈥檚 Power Play that 鈥渢he good news鈥� coming out of her meetings was a willingness 鈥渁nd indeed an enthusiasm鈥� to work with Canada on finding ways 鈥渇or people and goods in a safe and secure way to go across that border.鈥�
Freeland pointed out that 400,000 people cross the border every day and Canada is the top export market for 35 of 50 U.S. states, so more preclearance for people and cargo could be a 鈥渞eal benefit to our economy and a real comparative advantage for Canadian exporters.鈥�
Freeland added that 鈥渢he most important message from today鈥檚 meeting was a real re-affirmation from our American partners that they really understand the extent to which we have a balanced, mutually beneficial trade relationship.鈥�
The minister鈥檚 words came hours after Trump reassured Canadian business leaders after meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that
Interim Conservative leader Rona Ambrose told reporters in Ottawa that she was not surprised by Trump鈥檚 comments, noting that congressional leaders had made clear to her that the U.S. administration regards Canada positively.
Some economists have expressed concern that the Trump administration鈥檚 crackdown on immigration and his blasting of free trade deals will lead to a slowdown of U.S.-Canada trade
Trump and Trudeau stated that they 鈥渞ecognize the security of our borders as a top priority.鈥�
鈥淩ecognizing the success of pre-clearance operations for travelers, we commit to establishing pre-clearance operations for cargo,鈥� the statement goes on.
鈥淲e intend to accelerate the completion of pre-clearance for additional cities and continue to expand this program. Not only will these efforts enhance efficiency at our shared border, they will also strengthen our shared security.鈥�
