WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and US President Barack Obama plan to discuss free trade, climate change, as well as border and international security priorities, among other issues, at the White House on Thursday amid Trudeau’s historic three-day trip to the United States from March 9-11.
"This will be the first official visit by a Canadian Prime Minister to the United States in 19 years, and is a testament to the importance and value the United States and President Obama place on the US-Canada relationship," National Security Council Senior Director for Western Hemisphere Affairs Mark Feierstein told reporters on Tuesday.
Obama and Trudeau are developing a special relationship, the senior administration official noted, based on shared values that include a progressive vision of governing, commitments to multilateralism and diversity.
Trudeau’s visit to Washington might signal a strengthening of US-Canadian relations, but it also comes in the wake of contentious developments since the prime minister was elected last October, including Ottawa’s decision to cease airstrike operations in Syria and Iraq, and the US government’s decision to abandon the Keystone XL pipeline project.
Trudeau and Obama’s dialogue will also touch on the Syrian refugee crisis, the fight against the Islamic State terror group and securing the world’s longest common border between the United States and Canada.
On Wednesday, March 9, the eve of his meeting with Obama, the prime minister is slated to attend a reception co-hosted by think tanks Canada 2020 and the Center for American Progress at the Smithsonian Institution’s Renwick Art Gallery in the early evening.
Trudeau’s visit to the White House on Thursday will kick off at 9:00 a.m. (2:00 p.m. GMT) with an arrival ceremony on the South Lawn proceeded by a bilateral meeting and joint press conference with President Obama.
US Secretary of State John Kerry will then host Trudeau at a luncheon at the State Department to be followed by a state dinner with the Obamas that evening.
Trudeau planned on laying a wreath at the Arlington National Cemetery and chatting with university students in Washington, DC, on March 11, the final day of his US tour, according to The Canadian Press.
