(Image via Twitter)
President Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau held a joint press conference at the White House on Monday following their first official meeting.
Both leaders emphasized maintaining strong economic ties between their two countries and stressed the importance of security in the face of the threat of radical Islamic terrorism.
Where Trudeau and Trump parted ways was on the subject of immigration and refugees.
Trudeau said during the press conference that Canada plans to “continue to pursue policies of openness towards immigration refugees,” to be done "without compromising security," he added.
Trump, on the other hand, doubled down on his hardline stance on immigration and his plans to restrict travel of refugees and visitors from countries connected to terrorism.
“Relationships between neighbors are pretty complex and we won’t always agree on everything,” said Trudeau in his opening remarks.
“Make no mistake, at the end of the day, Canada and the U.S. will always remain each other’s most essential partner,” he added.
Trump and Trudeau sit on very opposite ends of the political spectrum.
Trudeau has criticized Trump for his views on immigration and his recent executive order temporarily halting travel of refugees and visitors from seven countries in the Middle East and Africa.
In a press conference leading up to his visit to the U.S., Trudeau told reporters that while he plans to “have a constructive working relationship with the incoming American administration,” he will “never … shy away from standing up for what I believe in.”
"Whether it's proclaiming loudly to the world that I am a feminist, whether it's understanding that immigration is a source of strength for us and Muslim Canadians are an essential part of the success of our country today and into the future," he said.
Trudeau went on, "These are issues that are things we can have discussions on and respectful disagreements on with our neighbors to the south, if indeed we have to have disagreements on them.”
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