Prime Minister Justin Trudeau takes part in a fireside chat during a Global Citizen Now event on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro on Nov. 17.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and U.S. President Joe Biden discussed the importance of democracy the rule of law during a meeting the G20 summit in Brazil on Monday.
A statement from the White House says Biden and Trudeau talked about the economy, climate change, migration and defence, just weeks before president-elect Donald Trump takes office.
The statement said Biden “underscored the importance of Canadian defence investment and the modernization of the Columbia River Treaty.”
Canada has been under increasing pressure from allies, including the U.S., to meet the NATO target of spending two per cent of GDP on defence. While all allies have agreed to spend at least that much, Trudeau has said Canada will only reach the target in 2032.
The White House statement also said both leaders “agreed that strengthening democracy and rule of law were essential to the prosperity and success of North America.”
The meeting came a day after The Associated Press reported that Biden has authorized Ukraine to use American-supplied missiles to strike deeper inside Russia.
Brazil hosts G20 with wars, Trump’s return in the background and focus on fighting hunger
In Ottawa Monday, Defence Minister Bill Blair said Trudeau has been clear about Canada’s support of Ukraine’s request to use U.S. missiles for strikes within Russian territory. He added that Canada has not placed any geographic restrictions on arms or ammunition sent to Ukraine.
“We believe that supporting Ukraine’s efforts to defend themselves against the illegal invasion of Russia is important, and that everything we were able to do to help Ukraine defend itself from that illegal invasion will bring us closer to peace,” Blair said.
Trudeau and Biden were meeting at the G20 summit in Brazil, where President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has made poverty the subject of the opening discussion among leaders.
Trudeau told a morning summit that gender equality has to be part of any solution to solving global poverty and hunger.
Media were not able to hear Trudeau’s remarks, but his office said he discussed Ottawa’s efforts to not only fund emergency relief but also to address the root causes of hunger in global food systems, including the need to reform multilateral and development-financing institutions.
Trudeau’s office said he highlighted that the world is at a critical moment where global instability and inequality are undermining the international rules-based order, just as armed conflicts are leading to displacement and migration.
Following that session, Trudeau met with his Japanese counterpart Shigeru Ishiba and Italy’s Giorgia Meloni.
He also met with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, just days after Trudeau voiced concerns about high levels of Chinese investment in Mexico. That issue is a potential hindrance to trade for the North American allies, given that Canada has followed the U.S. in imposing steep tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles.
Trudeau also has meetings scheduled Monday with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is defending his embattled carbon-pricing program on the world stage, and he argues that misinformation is threatening environmental progress. He spoke at a conference held by the anti-poverty group Global Citizen, ahead of the G20 leaders summit in Brazil, and said fighting climate change is not in conflict with affordability.
The Canadian Press