Biden, Lopez Obrador and Trudeau show unity during summit, downplaying tensions

MEXICO CITY – President Joe Biden, Mexican President Andres Manuel López Obrador and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau sought to downplay their grievances with each other over migration and trade during their meeting at the near-annual North American Leaders’ Summit.

On Tuesday, the leaders came out as a united front despite tensions that have strained their relationship, despite Biden making rebuilding alliances a cornerstone of his foreign policy agenda.

Tensions were at the center of attention when Biden and López Obrador met on Monday, with the Mexican president complaining about “abandonment” and “contempt” for Latin America.

But when they closed Tuesday’s Mexico City summit with a joint press conference, the leaders offered an upbeat outlook.

“The three of us are real partners,” Biden said, adding that they genuinely love each other. “We have a common vision for the future based on common values.”

López Obrador, for his part, thanked Biden for not building “even one meter of wall” — a not-so-subtle criticism of Biden’s Republican predecessor, Donald Trump. The warmth during their joint press conference contrasted sharply with the more acrimonious exchange the day before.

However, López Obrador pushed Biden to “press” Congress to legalize undocumented Mexican migrants who work in industries where US employers struggle to find enough workers.

The tripartite caucus is held most of the years, although there was a break when Trump was president. It is often referred to as the “three friends summit”, referring to the deep diplomatic and economic ties between countries.

However, the leaders have found themselves at odds, especially as they struggle to deal with an influx of migrants and crack down on smugglers who cash in on persuading people to take the dangerous trip to the United States.

In addition, Canada and the US accuse López Obrador of violating the free trade pact by favoring Mexico’s state-owned utility company over power plants built by foreign and private investors. Meanwhile, Trudeau and Lopez Obrador are worried about Biden’s domestic manufacturing efforts, raising fears that US neighbors could be left behind.

In a one-on-one meeting with Biden, Trudeau stressed the benefits of free trade and warned against the administration’s “buy America” ​​policies, according to the Prime Minister’s Office. Nearly 80% of Canada’s exports go to the US, so preventing protectionism remains a priority for Canada.

The summit’s key takeaways relate to improved ties between the three countries and the common goal of strengthening North America in energy and semiconductors in particular, climate and methane emission reduction commitments, agreements to manage large waves of migrants arriving in the region, and a more coherent regional strategy to combat future health threats associated with the pandemic.

During Monday’s talks, López Obrador urged Biden to improve life in the region, telling him “the key is in your hands.”

“The moment has come when we must decide to end this rejection, this neglect and this neglect in relation to Latin America and the Caribbean,” said López Obrador.

Biden responded by pointing to the billions of dollars the United States spends on foreign aid around the world.

At the start of the Biden-Trudeau meeting on Tuesday, the leaders spoke familiarly and optimistically. Trudeau called the US president “Joe,” and Biden joked with Trudeau – after the Canadian leader spoke to reporters in English and French – that he should have paid more attention to his college French classes.

Biden and Trudeau also discussed their countries’ efforts to support Ukraine, almost 11 months after the Russian invasion. On Tuesday, Canada announced that it would buy the US National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System, or NASAMS, for transfer to Ukraine. A ground-based medium-range air defense system that protects against drone, missile and aircraft attacks costs about $406 million, and Canada’s contribution to Ukraine since the start of the war is more than $1 billion.

The White House statement said the leaders also discussed “a generational opportunity to strengthen supply chains for critical minerals, electric vehicles and semiconductors.” The US administration also announced that Biden would make his first visit to Canada as president in March.

“There are many reasons to be optimistic, especially for those of us who live in our countries,” Trudeau said. “But it will take a lot of work, which neither you nor I nor most of our citizens have ever been afraid of.”

Biden and Lopez Obrador have not been on particularly good terms over the past two years. The Mexican leader made no secret of his admiration for Trump, and last year he missed the American summit in Los Angeles because Biden did not invite the authoritarian leaders of Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua.

But despite the tension, there was cooperation. The US and Mexico have also reached an agreement on a major immigration policy change that Biden announced last week.

Under the plan, the US will send back 30,000 migrants a month across the border from Cuba, Nicaragua, Haiti and Venezuela from among those who entered the US illegally. Migrants from these four countries are not easily repatriated for a variety of reasons.

In addition, 30,000 people per month from these four countries who receive sponsorships, background checks and air travel to the US will be able to legally work in the country for two years.

The number of migrants crossing the US-Mexico border has skyrocketed in Biden’s first two years in office. During the year ending September 30, there were over 2.38 million stops, the first time the number had exceeded 2 million.

López Obrador detailed Mexico’s efforts to control the flow into the United States of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that has plagued many American communities. He noted that his government has given the military control of seaports to help intercept precursor chemicals from Asia.

“We are fighting fentanyl, these chemicals, and we are doing it because we care. Not a single person is alien to us,” he said. “It’s really important for us to be able to help with what’s going on in the United States with fentanyl deaths. But also, as we discussed today, this is not only a problem for the United States, because if we do not confront this problem, this is a disaster, we will also suffer. Therefore, we must act in a coordinated manner.”

The US and other allies are pushing Canada to lead an international mission to Haiti to help resolve an ongoing humanitarian and security crisis.

CONNECTED: Biden visits US-Mexico border as migrant crisis escalates

Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henri and the country’s Council of Ministers issued an urgent appeal on October 7, calling for the “immediate deployment of specialized armed forces in sufficient numbers” to stop the crisis, partly caused by the “criminal activities of armed gangs.” But after more than three months, no country had come forward.

Trudeau called the situation “heartbreaking” on Tuesday. Both he and Biden said they would work with the UN Security Council to help the Caribbean nation, but also expressed caution about direct intervention.

“We need to make sure that decisions are made by the people of Haiti themselves,” Trudeau said.

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Associated Press contributors Mark Stevenson and Maria Verza in Mexico City; Rob Gillis in Toronto; and Aamer Madhani, Chris Megerian and Josh Boak of Washington contributed to this report.