PM Trudeau, President Biden agree to end 'loophole' in Safe Third Country Agreement: sources
Canada and the United States have agreed to have asylum seekers turned back at irregular border crossings across the border, including Roxham Road in Quebec.
The U.S. will agree to extend a bilateral treaty known as the Safe Third Country Agreement to apply along the 8,900 kilometres of the shared border, according to an official with the administration of President Joe Biden, who arrived in Ottawa Thursday evening.
In exchange, Canada will agree to welcome an additional 15,000 migrants from across the Western Hemisphere over the next year on a humanitarian basis, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
A Canadian government official with knowledge of the talks, granted anonymity to discuss matters not yet made public, also said Thursday that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Biden would discuss the issue during a bilateral meeting Friday.
The official said details were still being negotiated, but the leaders agreed in principle.
The agreement follows talks between Trudeau and Biden at the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles last June, a migration-heavy meeting where Canada agreed to admit just 4,000 more migrants by 2028.
Such a deal would not physically close off the Roxham Road unofficial crossing in Quebec, where thousands of migrants have entered Canada so they can make an asylum claim.
But it would effectively end its time as a viable route to Canada, as migrants who continue to cross there, or at any other unofficial crossing, would be treated as if they crossed at an official border checkpoint and be returned to the United States to make an asylum claim there.
Those travelling into the U.S. from Canada at unofficial crossings would likewise be returned north of the border by American authorities.
Under the Safe Third Country Agreement, first signed between the U.S. and Canada in 2004, asylum seekers must make their claim in whichever country they arrive first. That currently applies only to official border crossings.
But increasing numbers of migrants are opting to get around that rule by crossing at unofficial locations, such as Roxham Road, 50 kilometres south of Montreal. Taking this route means they can stay in Canada while waiting for a hearing, or for their case to be decided.
Last year, 39,000 people claimed asylum after crossing the unofficial border point into Quebec.
A lawyer for Amnesty International called the move to expand the provisions of the agreement "unconscionable," from a human rights perspective.
"It'll just push people to more remote areas, more dangerous crossings," said Julia Sande, a lawyer for the organization.
"If they're not going to be offered protection in the United States, they'll do what they need to do to get here, and that will just push people into dangerous situations."
The organization is one of three that are challenging the constitutionality of the Safe Third Country Agreement in the Supreme Court, arguing that the United States can't be counted on to carry out Canada's obligations to refugees under international law.
Meanwhile, the mayor of Niagara Falls, Ont., expressed relief that Canada and the U.S. appear to have made a tentative decision on the border crossing.
The federal government began transferring asylum claimants to various cities in Ontario, including Niagara Falls, after the Quebec government voiced concerns the migrants were placing pressure on publicly funded services.
Mayor Jim Diodati said 2,000 hotel rooms have been booked by the federal government for the asylum seekers and he found out Thursday that 500 more rooms were reserved for another group arriving on buses from the country road.
"That's a lot of people in our community, considering (the) population is about 95,000 people," he said in a phone interview. "That's a huge, immediate impact to our community."
The federal immigration minister's office would not comment on the details and status of the Canada-U.S. negotiations on Thursday.
At a press conference Wednesday, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser would only say his department was working on a solution that would go beyond the politics of the president's visit and "provide an actual lasting solution" to irregular border crossings.
Fraser said there has been no need for "horse trading" in the negotiations with the U.S. on the issue.
"This is something that both Canada and the United States believe in, is having an orderly policy at all of our borders, but also welcoming immigration policies for those who are fleeing violence, war, or persecution," he said.
There are larger-scale issues that must also be addressed, he said, including capacity to address the root causes of migration from countries people are fleeing from in the first place.
Biden arrived in Canada Thursday night for a 27-hour state visit, his first formal trip to Canada since being sworn in as the U.S. president in January 2021. Trudeau and Biden are to meet for a formal bilateral discussion in Trudeau's Parliament Hill office Friday morning.
Canada and the United States have been discussing how to improve the Safe Third Country Agreement for nearly five years.
In Canada, there are political divisions about what to do, with Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre calling for Canada to just "close" Roxham Road.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, for his part, wants the Safe Third Country Agreement suspended, allowing any migrant to make a claim in Canada regardless of how they get here.
"We believe that would give dignity to people that are already fleeing serious threats to their lives," Singh told reporters Thursday, though he said he's open to other solutions.
------
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 23, 2023. With files from Fakiha Baig in Toronto and James McCarten in Washington
IN DEPTH
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6922467.1718138898!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
'Not the result we wanted': Trudeau responds after surprise Conservative byelection win in Liberal stronghold
Conservative candidate Don Stewart winning the closely-watched Toronto-St. Paul's federal byelection, and delivering a stunning upset to Justin Trudeau's candidate Leslie Church in the long-time Liberal riding, has sent political shockwaves through both parties.
'We will go with the majority': Liberals slammed by opposition over proposal to delay next election
The federal Liberal government learned Friday it might have to retreat on a proposal within its electoral reform legislation to delay the next vote by one week, after all opposition parties came out to say they can't support it.
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'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.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6850735.1713368648!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
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
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6945600.1719608806!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
'We need new leadership': Liberal MP writes to caucus, says Justin Trudeau should resign
A sitting Liberal MP has written to the federal caucus to say he thinks Prime Minister Justin Trudeau should resign. 'For the future of our party and for the good of our country we need new leadership and a new direction,' said New Brunswick MP Wayne Long in the brief note.
DEVELOPING Minivan slams into a Long Island nail salon, killing 4 and injuring 9, fire official says
A minivan slammed into a Long Island nail salon Friday, killing four people and injuring 9, a Suffolk County fire official said.
Ontario MPP removed from PC caucus over 'serious lapses in judgment'
Premier Doug Ford has removed a member of his caucus due to what he’s describing as 'serious lapses in judgment.' In a statement released Friday morning, the premier’s office said MPP Goldie Ghamari had been removed from the Progressive Conservative caucus 'effective immediately.'
Is marriage harder than it was 10 years ago? Why one psychologist thinks so
Marriage might be the oldest institution in the world, but it's struggling to adapt to the pressures of modern life. Registered psychologist Adisa Azubuike explains why it's more difficult today.
Lt.-Gen. Jennie Carignan to become first woman to lead Canadian Armed Forces
Lt.-Gen. Jennie Carignan will be named Canada's new Chief of the Defence Staff, CTV News has learned, making her the first woman to lead the Canadian Armed Forces.
Multivitamins don't help you live longer, study suggests
Millions of people who take multivitamins everyday may not be reaping the perceived health benefits, according to new research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Five survivors from Sudbury, Ont., rescued in human trafficking investigation
Six people have been charged in a provincial human trafficking investigation that identified five survivors from Greater Sudbury.
Human remains discovered at recycling facility in B.C.'s Lower Mainland
Workers discovered human remains at recycling facility in New Westminster, B.C., on Thursday, CTV News has learned.
Sharks take forward Celebrini first overall at NHL draft
Macklin Celebrini is a member of the San Jose Sharks after the club selected the centre from Vancouver with the top pick at the 2024 NHL draft.
Local Spotlight
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6944611.1719580132!/httpImage/image.jpeg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpeg)
'I am very proud': Manitoba grandfather and grandson graduate high school in same class
A grandfather and grandson duo proudly graduated alongside each other at the same northern Manitoba school.
'Absolutely amazing video': Basking shark spotted along eastern shore of Nova Scotia
A large basking shark was captured close to the shoreline on Nova Scotia's Eastern Shore.
World's largest hockey stick in B.C. to be chopped up, sold to collectors
The world's largest hockey stick could soon become the world's most in-pieces hockey stick as a Vancouver Island community prepares to tear down and carve up the Canadian landmark.
'Hanging on for her life': Sask. family desperate to bring home sick niece from Philippines
For half a decade, a Saskatoon family has been trying to bring their orphaned niece to Canada, they say now it’s a matter of life or death.
'Really disappointed': Painting at Winnipeg Art Gallery found to be a forgery
The Winnipeg Art Gallery- Qaumajuq recently discovered that one piece in its collection is a fake and part of a massive art forgery ring that included more than 1,500 pieces.
Six-year-old Montreal boy triumphs in Canadian math competition
Six-year-old Bruce Arthur Chang is the new grand champion of Canada in the UCMAS math competition, and says he is hoping to make a mark on the international stage.
Halifax icon who wore high heels with pride dies at 86
Harold Brenton Anderson, who wore high heels for decades in Halifax and loved to travel, has died.
This Ottawa 'fat cat' on a weight loss journey has become a TikTok star
An Ottawa cat has morphed into a TikTok star, as he's slimming down from weighing 43 pounds.
'I just really like the sport': Meet the 90-year-old local slo-pitch player still living out his passion
Bill Neald is still living out his passion of playing baseball at the age of 90 in Regina’s Senior Mixed Slo-Pitch League.