President Biden met Thursday with the leaders of America’s neighbors to the north and south amid much praise on all sides, part of the president’s ongoing effort to rebuild relations with allies after a Trump administration that was often at odds with the nation’s longtime partners.
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But the pleasantries belied the more complicated reality that while Canada and Mexico welcome Biden’s friendlier tone, major points of contention remain, including America’s immigration policies and its approach to trade — both flash points under Trump — as well as disputes over climate change.
Speaking in the Oval Office, Biden complimented Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on “one of the easiest relationships that we have.” Trudeau returned the favor, telling Biden the two leaders had “lots of work to do together, but I can’t wait to get started.”
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The tête-à-tête between the American and Canadian leaders was the first of three meetings Biden hosted at the White House Thursday, including a second one-on-one with Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and third meeting between all three North American leaders.
The White House summit marked a return of the annual three-way meeting of the North American leaders after a four-year hiatus under President Donald Trump, who had a contentious relationship with Trudeau and former Mexican president Enrique Pe？a Nieto.
Both López Obrador and Trudeau arrived with concerns over energy issues and “Buy American” trade provisions championed by Biden. The president’s roughly $2 trillion social spending plan — which the House hopes to vote on as early as this week — contains provisions that could provide consumers with up to $12,500 in tax credits for purchasing U.S.-made electric vehicles.
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Mexican officials and executives see that provision as an affront to the integrated cross-border automobile supply chain.
Canadian officials also voiced exasperation with what they view as a growing U.S. protectionism, especially over the tax credit for electric vehicles.
“Since the election of President Biden, we have stressed our concerns with respect to Buy American, which continues to pose a particular challenge not only for companies and workers here in Canada, but also in the United States, because of the integration of our supply chains and our economies,” Trudeau said earlier this week.
“It’s counterproductive for Americans to put in place even more barriers and limitation on trade between our two countries,” Trudeau said.
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Chrystia Freeland, Canada’s deputy prime minister and finance minister, told reporters Wednesday that she, Trudeau and several other cabinet ministers had spent the day raising their concerns on Capitol Hill about Buy American policies and the proposed electric vehicles tax credit.
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Freeland said the Canadians were “very, very clear both in our meeting with the House team and our meeting with the Senate team about how important it is to Canada to have a resolution of the electric vehicle incentive proposal and how important it is to have reciprocal procurement opportunities between Canada and the United States.”
Energy policy has also driven a wedge between Biden and López Obrador. The Mexican president has proposed a large-scale reform of his country’s electrical system, which some U.S. business leaders say would discriminate against American energy producers. U.S. ambassador to Mexico Ken Salazar this month said the U.S. had “serious concerns” about the overhaul.
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Some American activists have criticized Mexico’s approach to climate change. López Obrador has made conditions challenging for the country’s nascent renewable sector and has done little to reduce carbon emissions, while championing the growth of the country’s oil industry
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And U.S. officials are concerned about actions they say run afoul of the U.S.-Mexico Canada free trade agreement, which replaced NAFTA under Trump.
“Probably the most important thing that can happen at this North American leaders’ summit is for President Biden to make clear to President López Obrador that the kinds of steps which seem to be violating USMCA — national treatment and even expropriation — are not going to be the right path forward,” said David Goldwyn, the chairman of the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center’s Energy Advisory Group.