Biden, Trudeau talk Haiti, trade on sidelines of summit in Mexico City
MEXICO CITY — President Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday pledged their resolve to promote prosperity for people throughout the hemisphere as they opened wide-ranging talks about the fragile security situation in Haiti, North American trade, political unrest in Brazil and more on the sidelines of the North American Leaders Summit.
Biden and Trudeau met one-on-one before a threeway meeting with Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador at the Mexico City summit. The U.S. and Canadian leaders’ warmth during a brief appearance before reporters at the start of their talks stood in stark contrast to a more brusque exchange a day earlier between Biden and López Obrador, who had complained of “abandonment” and “disdain” for Latin America.
Biden told Trudeau, “What we should be doing, and we are doing, is demonstrating the unlimited economic potential that we have when we work together in the hemisphere, and to help the entire hemisphere.”
All three world leaders were to discuss migration, trade and climate change as they look to mend tensions that have divided the continent.
The three-way gathering is held most years, although there was a hiatus while Donald Trump was U.S. president. It’s often called the “three amigos summit,” a reference to the deep diplomatic and economic ties among the countries.
However, the leaders have found themselves at odds, especially as they struggle to handle an influx of migrants and to crack down on smugglers who profit from persuading people to make the dangerous trip to the United States.