International cooperation is much needed now, and with a new president in the White House, the need is even greater.
It’s not news to anyone that the Canada-U.S. relationship has not been at its “peak” over the past four years. In a not-so-distant past, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was caught on a hot mic ridiculing U.S. President Donald Trump with other world leaders at the NATO summit, and Trump was retaliating with a tirade on Twitter.
In the long, colourful history of relations between Canada and the United States there has been some tenuous times, but the relationship between the two allies had never been this low.
From the nail-baiting NAFTA renegotiations, the threat of auto tariffs and tariffs on steel and aluminum, to defence policy, the COVID-19 international response and climate change, Canada’s ties with the U.S. sailed in uncharted waters under the Trump administration.
Thus, many Canadian officials heaved a big sigh of relief when Joe Biden was elected president of the United States in November 2020.
While Trudeau and his cabinet have restrained themselves from airing four years of grievances against the previous administration out in the open since the November presidential elections, and even after the Capitol riot in January, Trudeau did not waste a second during a bilateral meeting with Biden to show his relief, uttering phrases like “there is a lot to rebuild,” or saying that American environmental leadership has been sorely missed — that it’ll be nice not to scrub references to climate change from joint communiques.
But beyond the accolades and platitudes about Canada-U.S. relations, where do we go from the Trumpian era of withdrawalism and protectionism?
As Pierre Trudeau once famously said in 1969 during a meeting with U.S. President Richard Nixon in Washington: “Living next to you is in some ways like sleeping with an elephant. No matter how friendly and even-tempered is the beast, if I can call it that, one is affected by every twitch and grunt.”
This statement could not be more accurate right now, particularly after a rogue elephant has walked all over our bilateral relationships, and after a global pandemic has caused a severe economic downturn in both countries.
Canada’s recovery from COVID-19 is closely tied to the United States. From ensuring Canada secures a large enough supply of the vaccine for the majority of Canadians, to trade policy and economic activity, Canada is heavily dependent on the U.S. to get on the other side of this crisis.
While both governments currently align on a number of issues, including tackling climate change, international response to COVID-19, environmental policy and modernizing NORAD, Biden’s unilateral cancellation of Keystone XL and the “Buy American” policies remain key concerns.
The Canadian government must seek an exemption from the “Buy-American” procurement rules to protect Canadian businesses and ensure decisions impacting Canada’s economy are taken in consultation with the Canadian government.
For the auto industry, with the CUSMA fully secured both countries need to ensure that the vibrant and dynamic North American auto sector is supported. The recent executive order from U.S. President Joe Biden to address the shortage of semiconductors that is currently impacting production and inventory is a step in the right direction. The auto industry was hit hard by COVID-19 and further supply-chain disruptions and inventory shortages will dampen and slow the recovery of the industry.
Given the integrated nature of the North American auto industry, there also needs to be more cooperation with the United States on approaches to increase the adoption of ZEVs, including incentive programs and a reliable North American network of charging stations.
Furthermore, Canada has a long history of harmonizing vehicle emission and safety standards with the United States. Alignment provides environmental and economic benefits, while increasing choice and keeping costs low for consumers.
The harmonization of emissions standards needs to be a priority for both governments going forward. A clear and homogeneous set of rules across the board is essential to ensure compliance, reduce emissions, and ultimately achieve Canada’s climate change goals. Predictability and harmonization of emission regulations are essential to tackle a borderless issue, such as climate change, and require cooperation between countries.
With that said, in this an era of high uncertainty and with an increased need for international cooperation, it’s a good thing our relationship with the U.S. is on a better path. For Canada, we hope the friendlier elephant south of our border does not twitch and grunt too much.
