Trudeau’s opportunity in Washington, D.C.
Canada and the United States are each other’s most important bilateral relationship, but you wouldn’t know it living in Washington, D.C. As a former Canadian member of Parliament working in the American capital, Canada is rarely mentioned and its formal presence is largely absent from most of the meetings I attend on an array of global issues.
This is likely a measure of the effectiveness of the partnership, operating for the most part smoothly and behind the scenes. However, if Canada is going to increase its influence in the U.S. it needs to be more visible in the hypercompetitive environment that is the U.S. capital. That we have a unique, stable platform upon which to expand our collaborations and two leaders who seem to genuinely get along, is an opportunity we must not miss.
Security trumps all concerns in the United States. When Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and President Barack Obama meet this week in Washington there are three important security challenges of mutual interest that Canada can help advance: reducing the threat of terrorism, preventing pandemics and addressing climate change.
The metastatic threat of Islamist fundamentalist terrorist groups has been met primarily with military responses against organizations like Daesh in the Mideast and North Africa. While this response is appropriate to protect innocent civilians in these regions, it will not address the larger threat to Canada and the U.S. posed by individuals living in our countries, radicalized by Daesh’s propaganda.
Muslim communities and their leaders in North America are frantic that a small number amongst them have, in clear violation of their faith, embraced jihadists’ nihilistic propaganda. They want to work with civil authorities to help identify those who are being radicalized, share counter narratives that can negate violent rhetoric and shut down the online sites that are the vectors for these toxic messages.
Furthermore, Daesh was born out of discrimination, exclusion and violence meted out against Sunni communities by Shiite-led governments. Defeating Daesh and its partner groups will depend on resolving the Shiite-Sunni divide, improving governance and ensuring that public benefits and power sharing accrue to both Shiite and Sunni populations.
Canada can convene leaders from Muslim communities and civil authorities in North America to share counter narratives to terrorist propaganda, identify early intervention strategies to prevent radicalization and bring Sunni and Shiite leaders together to identify ways in which they can bridge their differences and end the violence that is shattering their communities abroad.
Canada can also convene religious leaders across faiths to unite in speaking out against the Islamophobia that tears at the fabric of our society and provides fuel for terrorist propaganda.
On Feb. 13, 2014, the U.S. launched the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA), in which countries vowed to collaborate to prevent, detect and respond to infectious diseases such as the Ebola and Zika viruses before they can become epidemics. However, many GHSA signatories lack the effective public service, public health and primary care systems necessary to support this response.
North America has a vast collection of universities, colleges and associations with a repository of professionals who can help build the training programs needed in many low-income nations to address their human resources deficits. Canada can create a North American capacity-building platform that can help align our institutions’ capabilities with the training needs in developing nations and plug this gap in the GHSA.
Climate change is a clear and present cause of instability through increases in extreme weather events, food insecurity, drought, conflict and the mass migration of people. Political opposition to addressing climate change in the U.S. remains stubbornly steadfast despite the evidence and warnings levelled by many including the U.S. defence department.
Canada and the U.S. generate an abundance of research on how to reduce our carbon footprint through economic levers, alternative energy sources, protecting carbon sinks and reducing energy use through developing more energy efficient buildings and cities. However, this knowledge is scattered and often not implemented. Canada can create a curated Climate Change Solutions Site that aggregates good practices and research that can address this global challenge.
When Trudeau meets Obama this week he can offer specific solutions to reduce the threat of domestic terrorism, strengthen the global response to potential epidemics and tackle climate change. Exercising Canadian leadership in these areas of mutual concern will demonstrate Canada’s willingness to have a more robust collaboration between our two countries. Doing this will strengthen this enduring partnership and help bring it out of the shadows.