- Canada and the United States agree on new immigrant regulation
- Joe Biden and Justin Trudeau would be able to turn away illegal immigrants in the northern border
- Canada would still accept 15,000 migrants trying to flee unsafe conditions in South and Central America under a legal refugee program
The United States government has agreed with Canadian authorities on a deal allowing both nations to turn away illegal immigrants crossing the northern border when crossings have surged.
A US official familiar with the agreement announced the news on Thursday. It comes as the deal is set to be revealed on Friday by President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau following a face-to-face meeting in Ottawa.
Addressing Illegal Immigration
The agreement would allow Canada to reject immigrants and turn them back at Roxham Road, which is a popular unofficial crossing point from New York for migrants who are seeking asylum in Canada.
In exchange for this, Canadian authorities have agreed to provide a new, legal refugee program for 15,000 migrants trying to escape violence, persecution, and economic devastation in South and Central America. As per the New York Times, this would result in less pressure on illegal crossings into the US from Mexico.
The Democratic president of the US arrived in Ottawa on Thursday evening and was scheduled for a 24-hour visit that would underscore the unity of purpose between the two countries. It comes after four years of frosty and sometimes even hostile exchanges between former President Donald Trump and Trudeau.
But Biden's visit to Canada is also expected to expose some difficult issues between the two nations. These include the longstanding debate over how to govern the movement of migrants across the border of the two countries.
The latest agreement also removes one of the relatively few disputes Biden and Trudeau have. Furthermore, the two world leaders are set to talk about differences in ways to stabilize Haiti and the global race to develop crucial materials needed to make batteries and other technology.
Canada and the United States New Agreement
The deal between Canada and the US is an update to the Safe Third Country Agreement established by both nations in 2004. That particular bill required migrants to claim asylum in the country through which they passed, but it did not apply to individuals who entered illegally, according to Fox News.
The agreement also marks a major victory for the Biden administration, who had continuously championed a regional approach to the migrant crisis after unveiling the Los Angeles Declaration at the Summit of the Americas held last year, which other leaders attended.
At the time, Biden said that safe, orderly, and legal migration was good for all economies involved. However, he argued that they needed to stop the dangerous and unlawful ways people were trying to migrate.
During a Thursday interview, Trudeau noted that there is still much work for officials to address illegal immigration. However, he noted that they were hopeful of announcing to reassure citizens of Canada and the Americans that they were handling the issue seriously, said CNN.
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