Canada breathes easy again as Joe meets with Justin

It took four years of Donald Trump to drag CanadaU.S. relations down to their lowest point in generations.

Whether it was slapping tariffs on Canadian metal exports, bulldozing a decades-old trade agreement, pooh-poohing climate change or calling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau “weak” and “dishonest,” the now-mercifully ex-president Trump bullied and browbeat this country the way he bullied and browbeat everyone else.

Considering all the bridges of goodwill he tore down and all the fences of animosity he erected in those 48 months, it was never going to be possible for his White House replacement, Joe Biden, to fix everything in Tuesday’s 90-minute virtual summit with Trudeau. But this coming together of two leaders and, as it turned out two, more simpatico minds, was a welcome start in patching a damaged but still crucial friendship.

The fact that this was Biden’s first meeting with a foreign leader since being sworn in last month showed Canada matters to him. The amiable rapport between the two, politically centrist leaders who addressed each other by their first names confirmed the working relationship between the two governments will be closer, more respectful and more predictable than it’s been for ages.

From the perspective of Trudeau and every Canadian keen on fighting global warming, the most welcome change is Biden’s fervent commitment to this cause. Not only did he bring the United States back into the Paris Climate Agreement on Feb. 19, he shares Trudeau’s target of achieving net-zero carbon emissions nationwide by 2050.

This increases the likelihood of a co-ordinated, continental strategy to beat climate change. Considering how closely the Canadian and American economies are interlinked, it will take this kind of team effort for there to be significant progress. If the goal, for instance, is to reduce the carbon emissions from cars and trucks, success will be more likely if Canadian and American auto manufacturers are in sync with each other in transitioning to electric vehicles.

Likewise, every Canadian who wants China to end its politically-motivated imprisonment of Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig will be heartened by Tuesday’s summit. In contrast to Trump’s indifference, Biden’s promise to push for their release offers new hope the Chinese government might free them.

The new president’s desire to repair the frayed ties between the U.S. and its traditional NATO allies could also benefit Canada. We are, after all, a midranked power that can better achieve its international objectives by working with other, like-minded countries. That includes, of course, the U.S., the world’s greatest economic and military powerhouse.

That said, it won’t be all smooth sailing ahead. Biden expects Trudeau to increase defence spending, which will prove challenging considering the fiscal pressures COVID-19 has placed on Ottawa. The president also wants Canada to join the U.S. in new efforts to contain a more aggressive China — a superpower Trudeau continues to handle with kid gloves.

And there’s no hint Biden might share COVID-19 vaccines to help the shortage in Canada, although that might happen if it led to a faster reopening of the border that’s so vital for both economies.

Whatever remains uncertain, Tuesday’s summit was a positive moment for Trudeau and Canada. It was as if the noisy, obnoxious boor who lived nextdoor had finally moved out and in his place a calm, new neighbour who wants to grow roses had moved in. Finally, after four lost years, we can all breathe a little more easily again.