Don't assume U.S. minds are made up about Safe Third Country treaty: Canada's envoy
President Joe Biden's administration is not dismissing out of hand the idea of renegotiating the bilateral 2004 treaty that governs the flow of asylum seekers across its northern border, says Canada's ambassador to the U.S.
Kirsten Hillman, in Ottawa to prepare for Biden's impending arrival on Thursday, said the administration understands how the Safe Third Country Agreement impacts the flow of migrants across the Canada-U.S. border.
Since those migrants are travelling in both directions, taking steps to discourage would-be refugees from slipping over the border undetected would be in the interest of both countries, she acknowledged.
"I think it does benefit both countries, and I actually think they do recognize that," Hillman said in an interview.
"I would say there's actually a lot of goodwill on the U.S. side to listen to us about this challenge that we're facing."
The agreement, signed in 2002 and implemented in 2004, requires asylum seekers to make their claim in the first country they arrive in, allowing customs agents to turn them away from official Canada-U.S. entry points.
It does not, however, cover claims made by migrants who manage to enter either country between official crossings, such as at Quebec's Roxham Road, the busiest unofficial entry point in Canada.
More than 39,000 claims were filed in 2022 by people who were intercepted by the RCMP, the vast majority of them in Quebec, prompting Premier Francois Legault to expressly ask Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for help.
Trudeau has acknowledged that the best solution is to renegotiate the treaty, but the U.S. has been widely seen as having no interest in doing so.
"They do care about this challenge that we are facing," Hillman said. "It just exists in a much broader context that is deeply complicated."
That, of course, includes the vastly more problematic U.S.-Mexico border, where agents and officials reported nearly 2.4 million "encounters" in fiscal 2022 and exceeded the one-million mark in the first five months of fiscal 2023.
Both the White House and the Prime Minister's Office have acknowledged that irregular migration will be on the agenda for this week's meetings, part of Biden's first visit to Canada since taking office in 2021.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby offered no new details on that agenda Tuesday, despite being asked whether Biden would be sympathetic to Canada's immigration issues.
"There are a range of issues that you can imagine they'll talk about," Kirby said, deferring to a briefing that's expected Wednesday.
"Everything from Norad and modernization of Norad capabilities, as well as of course military security and national security issues writ large, migration concerns, climate change, there will be certain issues of trade to discuss -- there's a lot."
At last summer's Summit of the Americas, Canada signed on to a holistic approach to a problem that's been manifesting around the world in recent years, exacerbated by the economic impact of COVID-19, the war in Ukraine, autocratic leaders and climate change.
Canada agreed to spend $26.9 million in 2022 on slowing the flow of migrants from Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as $118 million for progressive initiatives to improve the lives of people where they already live.
That included $67.9 million to promote gender equality; $31.5 million in health and pandemic response spending; $17.3 million on democratic governance and $1.6 million for digital access and anti-disinformation measures.
"It's not that the U.S. doesn't want to talk to us about the way in which those challenges are manifested at the Canada-U.S. border," Hillman said.
"That is part of what we are talking about. But it's only part of what we're talking about. What we're really talking about is this crisis in the hemisphere of migration."
It's long been a political problem for Biden, and it's becoming one for Trudeau as well.
In the U.S., Republicans are fond of touting a hardline, zero-tolerance approach to the southern border, depicting Democrats as soft on immigration. Some even want to see Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas impeached.
The northern border -- long seen as docile by comparison -- was dragged into the fray last month with the launch of the Northern Border Security Caucus, a group of Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill who say they fear a mounting tide of migrants slipping into the U.S. by way of Canada.
The U.S. does have an illegal migration problem at its northern border -- and it seems to be getting worse.
From October 2022 through February of this year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection recorded 68,784 encounters at or near the Canada-U.S. border with people deemed inadmissible, including 13,053 in the last month alone.
That's more than twice the 31,119 encounters that took place during the same five months the previous year, and more than halfway to the 109,535 reported during the entire 12-month stretch of fiscal 2022.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 22, 2023.
IN DEPTH
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Trudeau, key election players to testify at foreign interference hearings. What you need to know
The public hearings portion of the federal inquiry into foreign interference in Canadian elections and democratic institutions are picking back up this week. Here's what you need to know.
Who is supporting, opposing new online harms bill?
Now that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's sweeping online harms legislation is before Parliament, allowing key stakeholders, major platforms, and Canadians with direct personal experience with abuse to dig in and see what's being proposed, reaction is streaming in. CTVNews.ca has rounded up reaction, and here's how Bill C-63 is going over.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
TREND LINE What Nanos' tracking tells us about Canadians' mood, party preference heading into 2024
Heading into a new year, Canadians aren't feeling overly optimistic about the direction the country is heading, with the number of voters indicating negative views about the federal government's performance at the highest in a decade, national tracking from Nanos Research shows.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Arrest made, manslaughter charge pending in 2022 death of Calgary toddler
Calgary police have arrested a man and a charge is pending in connection with the death of a toddler in 2022.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Where did the gold go? Crime expert weighs in on unfolding Pearson Airport heist investigation
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Here's why experts don't think cloud seeding played a role in Dubai's downpour
Scientists say it's highly unlikely cloud seeding is responsible for the heavy rains that have caused flooding in the United Arab Emirates this month, and that climate change is the more likely culprit.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Local Spotlight
Marmot in the city: New resident of North Vancouver's Lower Lonsdale a 'rock star rodent'
When Les Robertson was walking home from the gym in North Vancouver's Lower Lonsdale neighbourhood three weeks ago, he did a double take. Standing near a burrow it had dug in a vacant lot near East 1st Street and St. Georges Avenue was a yellow-bellied marmot.
Relocated seal returns to Greater Victoria after 'astonishing' 204-kilometre trek
A moulting seal who was relocated after drawing daily crowds of onlookers in Greater Victoria has made a surprise return, after what officials described as an 'astonishing' six-day journey.
Ottawa barber shop steps away from Parliament Hill marks 100 years in business
Just steps from Parliament Hill is a barber shop that for the last 100 years has catered to everyone from prime ministers to tourists.
'It was a special game': Edmonton pinball player celebrates high score and shout out from game designer
A high score on a Foo Fighters pinball machine has Edmonton player Dave Formenti on a high.
'How much time do we have?': 'Contamination' in Prairie groundwater identified
A compound used to treat sour gas that's been linked to fertility issues in cattle has been found throughout groundwater in the Prairies, according to a new study.
'Why not do it together?': Lifelong friends take part in 'brosectomy' in Vancouver
While many people choose to keep their medical appointments private, four longtime friends decided to undergo vasectomies as a group in B.C.'s Lower Mainland.
Grain-gobbling bears spark 'no stopping' zone in Banff National Park
A popular highway in Alberta's Banff National Park now has a 'no stopping zone' to help protect two bears.
Deer family appears to accept B.C. man as one of their own
B.C. resident Robert Conrad spent thousands of hours on Crown land developing an unusual bond with deer.
Doorbell video shows family of black bears scared off by dog in Sudbury, Ont.
A Sudbury woman said her husband was bringing the recycling out to the curb Wednesday night when he had to make a 'mad dash' inside after seeing a bear.