The United States and Canada on Friday pledged to stand together against authoritarian regimes “both at home and abroad.” The vow was taken as US President Joe Biden and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meet during the former’s visit to Canada. As per Reuters, the two nations will fulfil this pledge in part by reducing their dependence on other countries, including “an increasingly assertive China” for critical minerals and semiconductors. Speaking to the Canadian parliament in Ottawa, the American President said that he believes that Canada and US can work together to create “reliable and resilient supply chains,” and that the “shared prosperity” of the two nations is connected to their “shared security.”
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“I believe we have an incredible opportunity to work together so Canada and the United States can source and supply here in North America everything we need for reliable and resilient supply chains,” said Biden adding that as NATO members, the two countries would “defend every inch of NATO territory”.
Also speaking at the Parliament, Trudeau said that the United States and Canada must work together to build a North American market on everything from semiconductors to solar panel batteries.
“With growing competition, including from an increasingly assertive China, there’s no doubt why it matters that we turn to each other now to build up a North American market on everything from semiconductors to solar panel batteries,” he said.
Reuters reports that while Canada already has an “abundance” of critical minerals used in the production of batteries and electric vehicles (EVs), China currently dominates the global market.
“Our way of living is facing multiple threats at the same time,” said Trudeau. As per Reuters, he also repeated three times in his speech the phrase “Security policy is climate policy is economic policy.” The Canadian leader expressed unity with the United States in supporting Ukraine and said that the two allies must continue “to face down authoritarian threats, both at home and abroad.”
(With inputs from agencies)
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