U.S. ‘acknowledged the work’: Fentanyl, border issues at heart of White House-Canada meeting

Mike Le Couteur reports from Washington where Canadian officials met with U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to discuss border security and fentanyl.

The U.S. has “acknowledged the work that Canada is doing at the border,” a senior government source told CTV News following a meeting between Canadian officials and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi.

The Wednesday afternoon meeting was “very warm, very cordial and very hospitable,” the source said, and focused on border security and fentanyl trafficking. Though it got off to a solemn start – Bondi had just come from a White House briefing on the Minnesota school shooting, which claimed the lives of two children. The Canadian delegation expressed condolences, the source said.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) reached out to Canadian officials to schedule the talks.

The Canadian delegation called it as a “touch-base meeting” with the goal of maintaining an open dialogue with the Americans. Justice Minister Sean Fraser, Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree and fentanyl czar Kevin Brosseau attended.

Fentanyl and border security have been sticking points between the two administrations for several months. U.S. President Donald Trump repeatedly referenced fentanyl to justify his tariffs against Canada, and declared a national emergency due in part to what the White House called a “public health crisis,” caused by fentanyl moving from Canada to the U.S.

Since then, Canada has appointed a fentanyl czar and earmarked $1.3 billion to bolster its border surveillance and enforcement.

A vast majority of the fentanyl trafficked into the U.S. comes from Mexico, and a study from the Manhattan Institute, an American think tank, found large Canadian-border fentanyl seizures were “relatively rare.”

But, in a fact sheet issued in late July, the White House said Canada had “failed to cooperate” to curb the “ongoing flood of fentanyl and other illicit drugs” into the U.S. from Canada.

On Wednesday, in addition to the discussion on border security, the Canadians shared plans to move forward with fall legislation on a number of issues, including bail and sentencing, gender-based and hate crime, and victim support.

LeBlanc optimistic: source

The meeting comes a day after Canada’s minister for trade with the U.S., Dominic LeBlanc, met with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.

A senior government source with knowledge of the meetings said LeBlanc left the room with optimism and a prudent sense of progress. The two won’t meet in person again for some time, while Kristen Hillman, Canada’s ambassador to the U.S., continues talks with trade representatives.

LeBlanc and Lutnick will keep in touch in the meantime. The Canadian will return home Wednesday, the source said.

“I haven’t seen any missteps,” Peter Clark, an international trade practitioner, told CTV News Channel Wednesday, prior to the meeting.

He also said Canada’s decision to drop a portion of its retaliatory tariffs regime against the U.S. was a “good move.”

“There are a few very good people in the embassy, starting with Ambassador Hillman,” he added. “They’re advising the government on what to do. I trust their advice”