Canada–United States relationsFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Canada–United States relations

Canada United States

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper(right) and U.S. President Barack Obama(left) meet in Ottawa in February

2009

Relations between Canada and the United States have spanned more than two centuries. This

includes a shared British cultural heritage, warfare during the 1770s and 1812, and the eventual

development of one of the most stable and mutually-beneficial international relationships in the modern

world. Each is the other's chief economic partner and tourism and migration between the two nations has

increased rapport. The most serious breach in the relationship was the War of 1812, which saw the

United States try and fail to invade Canada. The border remained the same after the war and was

demilitarized. Apart from minor raids, it has remained peaceful. Military collaboration began during World

War II and continued throughout the Cold War on both a bilateral basis through NORAD and through

multilateral participation in NATO. A high volume of trade and migration between the United States and

Canada has generated closer ties, especially after the signing of the Canada–United States Free Trade

Agreement in 1988.

Canada and the United States are currently the world's largest trading partners, [1] share the world's

longest border,[2] and have significant interoperability within the defence sphere. Recent difficulties have

included repeated trade disputes, environmental concerns, Canadian concern for the future

of oil exports, and issues of illegal immigration and the threat of terrorism. Nevertheless, trade between

the two countries has continued to expand in both absolute and relative terms for the last two hundred

years, but especially following the 1988 FTA and the subsequent signing of the North American Free

Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1994 which has since further merged the two economies.

The foreign policies of the neighbours have been closely aligned since the Cold War. However, Canada

has disagreed with American policies regarding the Vietnam War, the status of Cuba, the Iraq

War, Missile Defense, and the War on Terrorism. A serious diplomatic debate is whether the Northwest

Passage is in international waters or under Canadian jurisdiction.

There are close cultural ties between modern day Canada and the United States, advanced in large part

because both nations predominately speak English. However there are only weak ties between the

respective Francophone populations. Canada remains Americans' favorite foreign nation according to a

Gallup poll[3] published in 2010.

Meanwhile co-operation on many fronts, such as the ease of the flow of goods, services, and people

across borders are to be even more extended, as well as the establishment of joint border inspection

agencies, relocation of U.S. food inspectors agents to Canadian plants and vice versa, greater sharing of

intelligence, and harmonizing regulations on everything from food to manufactured goods, thus further

increasing the American-Canadian assemblage.[4]

According to a 2013 BBC World Service Poll, 84% of Americans view their northern neighbor positively,

with only 5% expressing a negative view, the most favorable perception of Canada in the world.

However, Canadian views of the U.S. are much more sharply divided, with 45% viewing the U.S.

positively and 45% viewing the U.S. negatively.[5]

Contents

  [hide]

1 Country Comparison

2 History

o 2.1 Colonial wars

o 2.2 Mingling of peoples

o 2.3 American Revolution

o 2.4 War of 1812

o 2.5 Conservative reaction

o 2.6 Alabama claims

o 2.7 Dominion of Canada

o 2.8 Emigration to and from the United States

o 2.9 Alaska boundary

o 2.10 Reciprocal trade with U.S.

o 2.11 Canadian autonomy

o 2.12 World War II

2.12.1 Newfoundland

o 2.13 Cold War

o 2.14 Nixon Shock 1971

o 2.15 Anti-Americanism

3 Relations between political executives

o 3.1 Mulroney and Reagan

o 3.2 Chrétien and Clinton

o 3.3 Bush and Chrétien

o 3.4 Bush and Harper

o 3.5 Harper and Obama

3.5.1 Canada-United States Regulatory Cooperation Council (RCC) (2011)

4 Military and security

o 4.1 War in Afghanistan

o 4.2 2003 Invasion of Iraq

5 Trade

6 Environmental issues

7 Illicit drugs

8 Diplomacy

o 8.1 Views of presidents and prime ministers

o 8.2 Territorial disputes

8.2.1 Arctic disputes

o 8.3 Common memberships

9 Diplomatic missions

o 9.1 Canadian missions in the United States

o 9.2 American missions in Canada

10 See also

11 References

12 Further reading

13 External links

Country Comparison[edit]

 United States  Canada

Populations 314,598,200 (October 2012) (3rd)[6] 34,951,600 (October 2012) (35th)[7]

Area 9,526,468 km² (3,794,101 sq mi)[8] 9,984,670 km² (3,854,085 sq mi)

Population density 33.7/km² (87.4/sq mi) 3.41/km² (8.3/sq mi)

Capital Washington, D.C. Ottawa

Largest city New York City Toronto

Government Federal Presidential Constitutional republicFederal Parliamentary democracy and Constitutional monarchy

Official languages None at federal level, but English de facto English and French

Main religions[when?]

78.4% Christian, 14.1% Unaffiliated, 2.6% Islam, 0.7% Buddhism, 1.7% Judaism, 0.4% Hinduism, 1.2% Other, 0.8% Don't Know/Refused Answer

75.4% Christian, 2.0% Islam, 1.1% Jewish, 1.0% Buddhism, 1.0% Hinduism, 0.9% Sikhism

GDP (nominal) (2011)[9] $15.094 trillion ($48,386 per capita) $1.736 trillion ($50,435 per capita)

GDP (PPP) (2011) [9] $15.094 trillion ($48,386 per capita) $1.396 trillion ($40,541 per capita)

Military expenditures[when?] $711 billion (4.7% of GDP) $22.8 billion (1.5% of GDP)

History[edit]

Colonial wars[edit]

Before the British conquest of French Canada in 1760, there had been a series of wars between the

British and the French which were fought out in the colonies as well as in Europe and the high seas. In

general, the British relied heavily on American colonial militia units, while the French relied heavily on

their Indian allies. The Iroquois Indians were important allies of the British.[10] Much of the fighting

involved ambushes and small-scale warfare in the villages along the border between New England and

Quebec. The New England colonies had a much larger population than Quebec, so major invasions

came from south to north. The Indian allies, only loosely controlled by the French, repeatedly raided New

England villages to kidnap women and children, and torture and kill the men.[11] Those who survived were

brought up as Francophone Catholics. The tension along the border was exacerbated by religion, the

French Catholics and English Protestants had a deep mutual distrust.[12] There was a naval dimension as

well, involving privateers attacking enemy merchant ships.[13]

England seized Quebec from 1629 to 1632, and Acadia in 1613 and again from 1654 to 1670; These

territories were returned to France by the peace treaties. The major wars were (to use American

names), King William's War (1689-1697); Queen Anne's War (1702-1713); King George's War (1744-

1748), and the French and Indian War (1755-1763).

New England soldiers and sailors were critical to the successful British campaign to capture the French

fortress of Louisbourg in 1745,[14] and (after it had been returned by treaty) to capture it again in 1758. [15]

Mingling of peoples[edit]

From the 1750s to the 21st century, there has been extensive mingling of the Canadian and American

populations, with large movements in both directions.[16]

New England Yankees settled large parts of Nova Scotia before 1775, and were neutral during

the American Revolution.[17] At the end of the Revolution, about 75,000 Loyalists moved out of the new

United States to Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and the lands of Quebec, east and south of Montreal.

From 1790 to 1812 many farmers moved from New York and New England into Ontario (mostly to

Niagara, and the north shore of Lake Ontario). In the mid and late 19th century gold rushes attracted

American prospectors, mostly to British Columbia (Cariboo, Fraser gold rushes) and later to the Yukon.

In the early 20th century, the opening of land blocks in the Prairie Provinces attracted many farmers from

the American Midwest. Many Mennonites immigrated from Pennsylvania and formed their own colonies.

In the 1890s some Mormons went north to form communities in Alberta after the LDS Church rejected

plural marriage.[18] The 1960s saw the arrival of about 50,000 draft-dodgers who opposed the Vietnam

War.[19]

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, about 900,000 French Canadians moved to the U.S., with

395,000 residents there in 1900. Two-thirds went to mill towns in New England, where they formed

distinctive ethnic communities. By the late 20th century, they had abandoned the French language, but

most kept the Catholic religion.[20] About twice as many English Canadians came to the U.S., but they did

not form distinctive ethnic settlements.[21]

Canada was a way-station through which immigrants from other lands stopped for a while, ultimately

heading to the U.S. In 1851–1951, 7.1 million people arrived in Canada (mostly from Continental

Europe), and 6.6 million left Canada, most of them to the U.S.[22]

American Revolution[edit]

At the outset of the American Revolution, the American revolutionaries hoped the French Canadians in

Quebec and the Colonists in Nova Scotia would join their rebellion and they were pre-approved for

joining the United States in the Articles of Confederation. When Canada was invaded during

the American Revolutionary War, thousands joined the American cause and formed regiments that

fought during the war; however most remained neutral and some joined the British effort. Britain advised

the French Canadians that the British Empire already enshrined their rights in the Quebec Act, which the

American colonies had viewed as one of the Intolerable Acts. The American invasion was a fiasco and

Britain tightened its grip on its northern possessions; in 1777, a major British invasion into New York led

to the surrender of the entire British army at Saratoga, and led France to enter the war as an ally of the

U.S. The French Canadians largely ignored France's appeals for solidarity. [23] After the war Canada

became a refuge for about 75,000 Loyalists who either wanted to leave the U.S., or were compelled by

Patriot reprisals to do so.[24] Among the original Loyalists there were 3500 free blacks. Most went to Nova

Scotia and in 1792, 1200 migrated to Sierra Leone. About 2000 black slaves were brought in by Loyalist

owners; they remained slaves in Canada until the Empire abolished slavery in 1833. Before 1860, about

30,000-40,000 blacks entered Canada; many were already free and others were escaped slaves who

came through the Underground Railroad.[25]

War of 1812[edit]

Main article: War of 1812

The Treaty of Paris (1783), which ended the war, called for British forces to vacate all their forts south of

the Great Lakes border. Britain refused to do so, citing failure of the United States to provide financial

restitution for Loyalists who had lost property in the war. The Jay Treaty in 1795 with Great Britain

resolved that lingering issue and the British departed the forts. Thomas Jeffersonsaw the nearby British

imperial presence as a threat to republicanism in the United States, and so he opposed the Jay Treaty,

and it became one of the major political issues in the United States at the time. [26] Thousands of

Americans immigrated to Upper Canada (Ontario) from 1785 to 1812; despite expectations that they

would be loyal to the U.S. if a war broke out, in the event they were largely non-political. [27]

Tensions mounted again after 1805, erupting into the War of 1812, when the Americans declared war on

Britain. The Americans were angered by British harassment of U.S. ships on the high seas and seizure

("Impressment") of 6,000 sailors from American ships, severe restrictions against neutral American trade

with France, and British support for hostile Indian tribes in Ohio and territories the U.S. had gained in

1783. American "honor" was an implicit issue. The Americans were outgunned by more than 10 to 1 by

the Royal Navy, and so a land invasion of Canada was proposed as the only feasible means of attacking

the British Empire. Americans on the western frontier also hoped an invasion would bring an end to

British support of Native American resistance to the westward expansion of the United States, typified

by Tecumseh's coalition of tribes.[28]

Once war broke out, the American strategy was to temporarily seize Canada as a means of forcing

concessions from the British Empire. There was some hope that settlers in western Canada—most of

them recent immigrants from the U.S.—would welcome the chance to overthrow their British rulers.

However, the American invasions were defeated primarily by British regulars with support from Native

Americans and Upper Canada (Ontario) militia. Aided by the powerful Royal Navy, a series of British

raids on the American coast were highly successful, culminating with anattack on Washington that

resulted in the British burning of the White House, Capitol, and other public buildings— the only time a

foreign power had ever captured and occupied the U.S. capital. Major British invasions of New York in

1814 and Louisiana in 1814–15 were fiascoes, with the British retreating from New York and decisively

defeated at the Battle of New Orleans. Both sides were about where they were in 1812, except that the

Indian allies of the British had been decisively defeated and British plans for an independent Indian

nation in the Midwest were abandoned. With the surrender of Napoleon in 1814, Britain ended naval

policies that angered Americans; with the defeat of the Indian tribes the threat to American expansion

was ended. The upshot was both sides had asserted their honour, Canada was not annexed, and

London and Washington had nothing more to fight over. The war was ended by the Treaty of Ghent,

which took effect in February 1815.[29] A series of postwar agreements further stabilized peaceful

relations along the Canadian-US border. Canada ended American immigration for fear of republicanism,

and built up the Anglican church as a counterweight to the largely American Methodist and Baptist

churches.[30]

In later years, Anglophone Canadians, especially in Ontario, viewed the War of 1812 as a heroic and

successful resistance against invasion and as a victory that defined them as a people. A common theme

ever since has been the fear that Canadian culture needs protection from American influence. Meanwhile

the United States celebrated victory in its "Second War of Independence," and war heroes such

as Andrew Jackson and William Henry Harrison headed to the White House.[31]

Conservative reaction[edit]

In the aftermath of the War of 1812, pro-imperial conservatives led by Anglican Bishop John

Strachan took control in Ontario ("Upper Canada"), and promoted the Anglican religion as opposed to the

more republican Methodist and Baptist churches. A small interlocking elite, known as the Family

Compact took full political control. Democracy, as practiced in the US, was ridiculed. The policies had the

desired effect of deterring immigration from United States. Revolts in favor of democracy in Ontario and

Quebec ("Lower Canada") in 1837 were suppressed; many of the leaders fled to the US. [32] The

American policy was to largely ignore the rebellions,[33] and indeed ignore Canada generally in favor of

westward expansion of the American Frontier.

Alabama claims[edit]

An editorial cartoon on Canada – United States relations, 1886. It reads: Mrs. Britannia.—“Is it possible, my dear, that

you have ever given your cousin Jonathan any encouragement?” Miss Canada.—“Encouragement! Certainly not,

Mamma. I have told him that we can never be united.”

At the end of the American Civil War in 1865, Americans were angry at British support for the

Confederacy. One result was toleration of Fenian efforts to use the U.S. as a base to attack

Canada. More serious was the demand for a huge payment to cover the damages caused, on the notion

that British involvement had lengthened the war. Senator Charles Sumner, the chairman of the Senate

Foreign Relations Committee, originally wanted to ask for $2 billion, or alternatively the ceding of all of

Canada to the United States.[34] When American Secretary of State William H. Seward negotiated

the Alaska Purchase with Russia in 1867, he intended it as the first step in a comprehensive plan to gain

control of the entire northwest Pacific Coast. Seward was a firm believer in Manifest Destiny, primarily for

its commercial advantages to the U.S. Seward expected British Columbia to seek annexation to the U.S.

and thought Britain might accept this in exchange for the Alabama claims. Soon other elements

endorsed annexation, Their plan was to annexBritish Columbia, Red River Colony (Manitoba), and Nova

Scotia, in exchange for the dropping the damage claims. The idea reached a peak in the spring and

summer of 1870, with American expansionists, Canadian separatists, and British anti-imperialists

seemingly combining forces. The plan was dropped for multiple reasons. London continued to stall,

American commercial and financial groups pressed Washington for a quick settlement of the dispute on

a cash basis, growing Canadian nationalist sentiment in British Columbia called for staying inside the

British Empire, Congress became preoccupied with Reconstruction, and most Americans showed little

interest in territorial expansion. The "Alabama Claims" dispute went to international arbitration. In one of

the first major cases of arbitration, the tribunal in 1872 supported the American claims and ordered

Britain to pay $15.5 million. Britain paid and the episode ended in peaceful relations.[35][36]

Dominion of Canada[edit]

Canada became a self-governing dominion in 1867 in internal affairs while Britain controlled diplomacy

and defense policy. Prior to Confederation, there was an Oregon boundary dispute in which the

Americans claimed the 54th degree latitude. That issue was resolved by splitting the disputed territory;

the northern half became British Columbia, and the southern half the states of Washington and Oregon.

Strained relations with America continued, however, due to a series of small-scale armed incursions

named the Fenian raids by Irish-American Civil War veterans across the border from 1866 to 1871 in an

attempt to trade Canada for Irish independence.[37] The American government, angry at Canadian

tolerance of Confederate raiders during the American Civil War, moved very slowly to disarm

the Fenians. The British government, in charge of diplomatic relations, protested cautiously, as Anglo-

American relations were tense. Much of the tension was relieved as the Fenians faded away and in 1872

by the settlement of the Alabama Claims, when Britain paid the U.S. $15.5 million for war losses caused

by warships built in Britain and sold to the Confederacy.

Disputes over ocean boundaries on Georges Bank and over fishing, whaling, and sealing rights in the

Pacific were settled by international arbitration, setting an important precedent.[38]

Emigration to and from the United States[edit]

Further information: French American

After 1850, the pace of industrialization and urbanization was much faster in the United States, drawing a

wide range of immigrants from the North. By 1870, 1/6 of all the people born in Canada had moved to the

United States, with the highest concentrations in New England, which was the destination of emigrants

from Quebec and the Maritimes; people from Ontario moved into nearby Michigan. It was common for

people to move back and forth across the border, such as seasonal lumberjacks, entrepreneurs looking

for larger markets, and families looking for jobs in the textile mills that paid much higher wages than in

Quebec.[39]

The southward migration slacked off after 1890, as Canadian industry began a growth spurt. By then, the

American frontier was closing, and hundreds of thousands of farmers looking for fresh land moved from

the United States north into the Prairie Provinces. The net result of the flows were that in 1901 there

were 128,000 American-born residents in Canada (3.5% of the Canadian population) and 1.18 million

Canadian-born residents in the United States (1.6% of the U.S. population).[40]

Alaska boundary[edit]

A long-standing controversy was the Alaska boundary dispute, settled in favor of the United States in

1903. At issue was the exact boundary between Alaska and Canada, specifically whether Canada would

have a port near the present American town of Haines that would give an all-Canadian route to the rich

new Yukon goldfields. The dispute was settled by arbitration, and the British delegate voted with the

Americans—to the astonishment and disgust of Canadians who suddenly realized that Britain considered

its relations with the United States paramount compared to those with Canada.[41]

1907 saw a minor controversy over USS Nashville sailing into the Great Lakes via Canada without

Canadian permission. To head off future embarrassments, in 1909 the two sides signed theInternational

Boundary Waters Treaty and the International Joint Commission was established to manage the Great

Lakes.

Reciprocal trade with U.S.[edit]

A 1911 Conservative campaign poster warns that the big American companies ("trusts") will hog all the benefits of

reciprocity as proposed by Liberals, leaving little left over for Canadian interests.

Anti-Americanism reached a shrill peak in 1911 in Canada.[42] The Liberal government in 1911 negotiated

a Reciprocity treaty with the U.S. that would lower trade barriers. Canadian manufacturing interests were

alarmed that free trade allow the bigger and more efficient American factories to take their markets. The

Conservatives made it a central campaign issue in the 1911 election, warning that it would be a "sell out"

to the United States with economic annexation a special danger.[43] Conservative slogan was "No truck or

trade with the Yankees", as they appealed to Canadian nationalism and nostalgia for the British Empire

to win a major victory.[44]

Canadian autonomy[edit]

Canada demanded and received permission from London to send its own delegation to the Versailles

Peace Talks in 1919, with the proviso that it sign the treaty under the British Empire. Canada

subsequently took responsibility for its own foreign and military affairs in the 1920s. Its first ambassador

to the United States, Vincent Massey, was named in 1927. The United States first ambassador to

Canada was William Phillips. Canada became an active member of the British Commonwealth,

the League of Nations, and the World Court, none of which included the U.S.

Relations with the United States were cordial until 1930, when Canada vehemently protested the

new Smoot–Hawley Tariff Act by which the U.S. raised tariffs (taxes) on products imported from Canada.

Canada retaliated with higher tariffs of its own against American products, and moved toward more trade

within the British Commonwealth. U.S.-Canadian trade fell 75% as the Great Depression dragged both

countries down.[45][46]

Down to the 1920s the war and naval departments of both nations designed hypothetical war game

scenarios with the other as an enemy. These were primarily exercises; the departments were never told

to get ready for a real war. In 1921, Canada developed Defence Scheme No. 1 for an attack on

American cities and for forestalling invasion by the United States until Imperial reinforcements arrived.

Through the later 1920s and 1930s, the United States Army War College developed a plan for a war with

the British Empirewaged largely on North American territory, in War Plan Red (interestingly, American

war planners had no thoughts of returning captured British territory.)[47]

Herbert Hoover meeting in 1927 with British Ambassador Sir Esme Howard agreed on the "absurdity of

contemplating the possibility of war between the United States and the British Empire." [48]

In 1938, as war clouds gathered in Europe, U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt gave a public speech at

Queens University in Kingston, Ontario, declaring that the United States would not sit idly by if another

power tried to dominate Canada. Diplomats saw it as a clear warning to Germany not to attack Canada.[49]

World War II[edit]

A Canadian Mountie and an AmericanMaine State Trooper on their respective sides of the Maine - Quebec border in

1941

The two nations cooperated closely in World War II,[50] as both nations saw new levels of prosperity and a

determination to defeat the Axis powers. Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King and

President Franklin D. Roosevelt were determined not to repeat the mistakes of their predecessors.[51]They met in August 1940 at Ogdensburg, issuing a declaration calling for close cooperation, and

formed the Permanent Joint Board on Defense (PJBD).

King sought to raise Canada's international visibility by hosting the August 1943 Quadrant conference in

Quebec on military and political strategy; he was a gracious host but was kept out of the important

meetings by Winston Churchill and Roosevelt.

Canada allowed the construction of the Alaska Highway and participated in the building of the atomic

bomb. 49,000 Americans joined the RCAF (Canadian) or RAF (British) air forces through the Clayton

Knight Committee, which had Roosevelt's permission to recruit in the U.S. in 1940-42.[52]

American attempts in the mid-1930s to integrate British Columbia into a united West Coast military

command had aroused Canadian opposition. Fearing a Japanese invasion of Canada's vulnerable coast,

American officials urged the creation of a united military command for an eastern Pacific Ocean theater

of war. Canadian leaders feared American imperialism and the loss of autonomy more than a Japanese

invasion. In 1941, Canadians successfully argued within the PJBD for mutual cooperation rather than

unified command for the West Coast.[53]

Newfoundland[edit]

The United States built large military bases in Newfoundland, at the time, a British crown colony. The

American involvement ended the depression and brought new prosperity; Newfoundland's business

community sought closer ties with the United States as expressed by the Economic Union Party. Ottawa

took notice and wanted Newfoundland to join Canada, which it did after hotly contested referenda. There

was little demand in the United States for the acquisition of Newfoundland, so the United States did not

protest the British decision not to allow an American option on the Newfoundland referendum.[54]

Cold War[edit]

Following co-operation in the two World Wars, Canada and the United States lost much of their previous

animosity. As Britain's influence as a global imperial power declined, Canada and the United States

became extremely close partners. Canada was a close ally of the United States during the Cold War.

Nixon Shock 1971[edit]

Richard Nixon addresses a joint sessionof the Parliament of Canada, 1972.

The United States had become Canada's largest market, and after the war the Canadian economy

became dependent on smooth trade flows with the United States so much that in 1971 when the United

States enacted the "Nixon Shock" economic policies (including a 10% tariff on all imports) it put the

Canadian government into a panic. This led in a large part to the articulation of Prime Minister Trudeau's

"Third Option" policy of diversifying Canada's trade and downgrading the importance of Canada – United

States relations. In a 1972 speech in Ottawa, Nixon declared the "special relationship" between Canada

and the United States dead.[55]

Anti-Americanism[edit]

Further information: Anti-Americanism in Canada

Since the arrival of the Loyalists as refugees from the American Revolution in the 1780s, historians have

identified a constant theme of Canadian fear of the United States and of "Americanization" or a cultural

takeover. In the War of 1812, for example, the enthusiastic response by French militia to defend Lower

Canada reflected, according to Heidler and Heidler (2004), "the fear of Americanization."[56] Scholars

have traced this attitude over time in Ontario and Quebec.[57]

Canadian intellectuals who wrote about the U.S. in the first half of the 20th century identified America as

the world center of modernity, and deplored it. Imperialists (who admired the British Empire) explained

that Canadians had narrowly escaped American conquest with its rejection of tradition, its worship of

"progress" and technology, and its mass culture; they explained that Canada was much better because

of its commitment to orderly government and societal harmony. There were a few ardent defenders of

the nation to the south, notably liberal and socialist intellectuals such as F. R. Scott and Jean-Charles

Harvey (1891-1967).[58]

Looking at television, Collins (1990) finds that it is in English Canada that fear of cultural Americanization

is most powerful, for there the attractions of the U.S. are strongest.[59] Meren (2009) argues that after

1945, the emergence of Quebec nationalism and the desire to preserve French-Canadian cultural

heritage led to growing anxiety regarding American cultural imperialism and Americanization.[60] In 2006

surveys showed that 60 percent of Quebecers had a fear of Americanization, while other surveys

showed they preferred their current situation to that of the Americans in the realms of health care, quality

of life as seniors, environmental quality, poverty, educational system, racism and standard of living.

While agreeing that job opportunities are greater in America, 89 percent disagreed with the notion that

they would rather be in the United States, and they were more likely to feel closer to English Canadians

than to Americans.[61] However, there is evidence that the elites and Quebec are much less fearful of

Americanization, and much more open to economic integration than the general public.[61]

The history has been traced in detail by a leading Canadian historian J.L. Granatstein in Yankee Go

Home: Canadians and Anti-Americanism (1997). Current studies report the phenomenon persists. Two

scholars report, "Anti-Americanism is alive and well in Canada today, strengthened by, among other

things, disputes related to NAFTA, American involvement in the Middle East, and the ever-increasing

Americanization of Canadian culture."[62] Jamie Glazov writes, "More than anything else, Diefenbaker

became the tragic victim of Canadian anti-Americanism, a sentiment the prime minister had fully

embraced by 1962. [He was] unable to imagine himself (or his foreign policy) without

enemies."[63] Historian J. M. Bumsted says, "In its most extreme form, Canadian suspicion of the United

States has led to outbreaks of overt anti-Americanism, usually spilling over against Americans resident in

Canada."[64] John R. Wennersten writes, "But at the heart of Canadian anti-Americanism lies a cultural

bitterness that takes an American expatriate unawares. Canadians fear the American media's influence

on their culture and talk critically about how Americans are exporting a culture of violence in its television

programming and movies."[65] However Kim Nossal points out that the Canadian variety is much milder

than anti-Americanism in some other countries.[66] By contrast Americans show very little knowledge or

interest one way or the other regarding Canadian affairs.[67] Canadian historian Frank Underhill, quoting

Canadian playwright Merrill Denison summed it up: "Americans are benevolently ignorant about Canada,

whereas Canadians are malevolently informed about the United States."[68]

Relations between political executives[edit]

The executive of each country is represented differently. In the United States, the president is both head

of state and head of government, and his "administration" is the executive. In Canada the prime minister

is head of government only, and his or her "government" or "ministry" directs the executive.

This section requires expansion. (May

2012)

Mulroney and Reagan[edit]

The Mulroneys with President and Mrs. Reagan in Quebec, Canada, 18 March 1985, the day after the two leaders

famously sang "When Irish Eyes are Smiling".

Relations between Brian Mulroney and Ronald Reagan were famously close. This relationship resulted in

negotiations on a potential free trade agreement, and a treaty of acid rain causing emissions, both major

policy goals of Mulroney, that would be finalized under the presidency of George H. W. Bush.

Chrétien and Clinton[edit]

Although Jean Chrétien was wary to appearing too close to the president, personally, he and Bill

Clinton were known to be golfing partners. Their governments had many small trade quarrels over

magazines, softwood lumber, and so on, but on the whole were quite friendly. Both leaders had run on

reforming or abolishing NAFTA, but the agreement went ahead with the addition of environmental and

labor side agreements. Crucially, the Clinton administration lent rhetorical support to Canadian unity

during the 1995 referendum in Quebec on independence from Canada.

Bush and Chrétien[edit]

Jean Chrétien and George Bush shake hands at a meeting in Detroit in 2002.

Relations between Chrétien and George W. Bush were strained throughout their overlapping times in

office. Jean Chrétien publicly mused that U.S. foreign policy might be part of the "root causes" of

terrorism shortly after the September 11 attacks. The Americans did not appreciate his "smug moralism",

and Chrétien's public refusal to support the 2003 Iraq war was met with chagrin in the United States,

especially among conservatives.[69]

President George W. Bush and Prime Minister Paul Martin respond to questions from the press corps in the Rose

Garden after a meeting at the White House on April 30, 2004.

Bush and Harper[edit]

Stephen Harper and George W. Bush were thought to share warm personal relations and also close ties

between their administrations. Because Bush was so unpopular in Canada, however, this was rarely

emphasized by the Harper government.[70]

Shortly after being congratulated by Bush for his victory in February 2006, Harper rebuked U.S.

ambassador to Canada David Wilkins for criticizing the Conservatives' plans to assert Canada's

sovereignty over the Arctic Ocean waters with military force.

Harper and Obama[edit]

President Obama's first international trip was to Canada on February 19, 2009.[71] Aside from Canadian

lobbying against "Buy American" provisions in the U.S. stimulus package, relations between the two

administrations have been smooth.

Canada-United States Regulatory Cooperation Council (RCC) (2011)[edit]

On February 4, 2011, Harper and Obama issued a "Declaration on a Shared Vision for Perimeter

Security and Economic Competitiveness"[72][73] and announced the creation of the Canada-United States

Regulatory Cooperation Council (RCC) "to increase regulatory transparency and coordination between

the two countries." [74]

Health Canada and the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under the RCC mandate,

undertook the "first of its kind" initiative by selecting "as its first area of alignment common cold

indications for certain over-the-counter antihistamine ingredients (GC 2013-01-10)." [75]

Critics of the plan have compared Regulatory Cooperation Council (RCC) to the SPP, without Mexico.[76] On Wednesday, December 7, Harper flew to Washington to meet with Obama and sign an agreement

to implement the joint action plans that had been developed since the initial meeting in February. The

plans called on both countries to spend more on border infrastructure, share more information on people

who cross the border, and acknowledge more of each other's safety and security inspection on third-

country traffic. An editorial in The Globe and Mail praised the agreement for giving Canada the ability to

track whether failed refugee claimants have left Canada via the U.S. and for eliminating "duplicated

baggage screenings on connecting flights".[77] The agreement is not a legally-binding treaty, and relies on

the political will and ability of the executives of both governments to implement the terms of the

agreement. These types of executive agreements are routine—on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border.

Military and security[edit]

North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), long headquartered in the Cheyenne Mountain Operations

Center in Colorado, exemplifies military co-operation between Canada and the U.S.

Banners on the Canadian embassy in Washington saying "Friends, Neighbours, Partners, Allies"

The Canadian military, like forces of other NATO countries, fought alongside the United States in most

major conflicts since World War II, including theKorean War, the Gulf War, the Kosovo War, and most

recently the war in Afghanistan. The main exceptions to this were the Canadian government's opposition

to the Vietnam War and the Iraq War, which caused some brief diplomatic tensions. Despite these

issues, military relations have remained close.

American defense arrangements with Canada are more extensive than with any other country.[78] The Permanent Joint Board of Defense, established in 1940, provides policy-level consultation on

bilateral defense matters. The United States and Canada share North Atlantic Treaty

Organization (NATO) mutual security commitments. In addition, American and Canadian military forces

have cooperated since 1958 on continental air defense within the framework of the North American

Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). Canadian forces have provided indirect support for the

American invasion of Iraq that began in 2003.[79] Moreover, interoperability with the American armed

forces has been a guiding principle of Canadian military force structuring and doctrine since the end of

the Cold War. Canadian navy frigates, for instance, integrate seamlessly into American carrier battle

groups.[80]

War in Afghanistan[edit]

Main article: Canada's role in the invasion of Afghanistan

Canada's elite JTF2 unit joined American special forces in Afghanistan shortly after the al-Qaida attacks

on September 11, 2001. Canadian forces joined the multinational coalition in Operation Anaconda in

January 2002. On April 18, 2002, an American pilot bombed Canadian forces involved in a training

exercise, killing four and wounding eight Canadians. A joint American-Canadian inquiry determined the

cause of the incident to be pilot error, in which the pilot interpreted ground fire as an attack; the pilot

ignored orders that he felt were "second-guessing" his field tactical decision.[81][82] Canadian forces

assumed a six-month command rotation of the International Security Assistance Force in 2003; in 2005,

Canadians assumed operational command of the multi-national Brigade in Kandahar, with 2,300 troops,

and supervises the Provincial Reconstruction Team in Kandahar, where al-Qaida forces are most active.

Canada has also deployed naval forces in the Persian Gulf since 1991 in support of the UN Gulf

Multinational Interdiction Force.[83]

The Canadian Embassy in Washington, DC maintains a public relations web

site named CanadianAlly.com, which is intended "to give American citizens a better sense of the scope

of Canada's role in North American and Global Security and the War on Terror".

The New Democratic Party and some recent Liberal leadership candidates have expressed opposition to

Canada's expanded role in the Afghan conflict on the ground that it is inconsistent with Canada's historic

role (since the Second World War) of peacekeeping operations.[84]

2003 Invasion of Iraq[edit]

See also: Canada and the Iraq War and Canada and Iraq War resisters

According to contemporary polls, 71% of Canadians were opposed to the 2003 invasion of Iraq.[85] Many

Canadians, and the former Liberal Cabinet headed by Paul Martin (as well as many Americans such

as Bill Clinton and Barack Obama),[86] made a policy distinction between conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq,

unlike the Bush Doctrine, which linked these together in a "Global war on terror".

Trade[edit]

Main article: Canada–United States trade relations

Canada and the United States have the world's largest trading relationship, with huge quantities of goods

and people flowing across the border each year. Since the 1987 Canada–United States Free Trade

Agreement, there have been no tariffs on most goods passed between the two countries.

In the course of the softwood lumber dispute, the U.S. has placed tariffs on Canadian softwood

lumber because of what it argues is an unfair Canadian government subsidy, a claim which Canada

disputes. The dispute has cycled through several agreements and arbitration cases. Other notable

disputes include the Canadian Wheat Board, and Canadian cultural "restrictions" on magazines and

television (See CRTC, CBC, and National Film Board of Canada). Canadians have been criticized about

such things as the ban on beef since a case of Mad Cow disease was discovered in 2003 in cows from

the United States (and a few subsequent cases) and the high American agricultural subsidies. Concerns

in Canada also run high over aspects of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) such as

Chapter 11.[87]

One ongoing and complex trade issue involves the importation of cheaper prescription drugs from

Canada to the United States. American drug companies—often supporters of political campaigns—have

come out against the practice.[88]

Environmental issues[edit]

A Canadian BC Parks Ranger and a U.S. National Park Ranger work to remove a bear from a campground along the

international boundary in British Columbia and Washington State.

A principal instrument of this cooperation is the International Joint Commission (IJC), established as part

of the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909 to resolve differences and promote international cooperation on

boundary waters. The Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement of 1972 is another historic example of joint

cooperation in controlling trans-border water pollution.[89] However, there have been some disputes. Most

recently, the Devil's LakeOutlet, a project instituted by North Dakota, has angered Manitobans who fear

that their water may soon become polluted as a result of this project.

Beginning in 1986 the Canadian government of Brian Mulroney began pressing the Reagan

administration for an "Acid Rain Treaty" in order to do something about U.S. industrial air pollution

causing acid rain in Canada. The Reagan administration was hesitant, and questioned the science

behind Mulroney's claims. However, Mulroney was able to prevail. The product was the signing and

ratification of the Air Quality Agreement of 1991 by the first Bush administration. Under that treaty, the

two governments consult semi-annually on trans-border air pollution, which has demonstrably reduced

acid rain, and they have since signed an annex to the treaty dealing with ground level ozone in 2000.[90][91]

[92][93] Despite this, trans-border air pollution remains an issue, particularly in the Great Lakes-St.

Lawrence watershed during the summer. The main source of this trans-border pollution results from coal-

fired power stations, most of them located in the Midwestern United States.[94] As part of the negotiations

to create NAFTA, Canada and the U.S. signed, along with Mexico, the North American Agreement On

Environmental Cooperation which created the Commission for Environmental Cooperationwhich

monitors environmental issues across the continent, publishing the North American Environmental

Atlas as one aspect of its monitoring duties.[95]

Currently neither of the countries' governments support the Kyoto Protocol, which set out time scheduled

curbing of greenhouse gas emissions. Unlike the United States, Canada has ratified the agreement. Yet

after ratification, due to internal political conflict within Canada, the Canadian government does not

enforce the Kyoto Protocol, and has received criticism from environmental groups and from other

governments for its climate change positions. In January 2011, the Canadian minister of the

environment, Peter Kent, explicitly stated that the policy of his government with regards to greenhouse

gas emissions reductions is to wait for the United States to act first, and then try to harmonize with that

action - a position that has been condemned by environmentalists and Canadian nationalists, and even

government think-tanks.[96][97]

Illicit drugs[edit]

Main articles: Drug policy of the United States and Drug policy of Canada

In 2003 the American government became concerned when members of the Canadian government

announced plans to decriminalize marijuana. David Murray, an assistant to U.S. Drug Czar John P.

Walters, said in a CBC interview that, "We would have to respond. We would be forced to

respond."[98] However the election of the Conservative Party in early 2006 halted the liberalization of

marijuana laws for the foreseeable future.

A 2007 joint report by American and Canadian officials on cross-border drug smuggling indicated that,

despite their best efforts, "drug trafficking still occurs in significant quantities in both directions across the

border. The principal illicit substances smuggled across our shared border are MDMA (Ecstasy),

cocaine, and marijuana." - [99] The report indicated that Canada was a major producer of Ecstasy and

marijuana for the U.S. market, while the U.S. was a transit country for cocaine entering Canada.

Diplomacy[edit]

Former Governor General of Canada Michaëlle Jean  (right) and U.S. President Barack Obama  meet in Ottawa in

February 2009

Views of presidents and prime ministers[edit]

Presidents and prime ministers typically make formal or informal statements that indicate the diplomatic

policy of their administration. Diplomats and journalists at the time—and historians since—dissect the

nuances and tone to detect the warmth or coolness of the relationship.

Prime Minister John A. Macdonald, speaking at the beginning of the 1891 election (fought mostly

over Canadian free trade with the United States), denied Tory allegations that he wanted to

amalgamate with the U.S. saying: "As for myself, my course is clear. A British subject I was born—a

British subject I will die. With my utmost effort, with my latest breath, will I oppose the ‘veiled treason’

which attempts by sordid means and mercenary proffers to lure our people from their allegiance."

(February 3, 1891.[100])

Prime Minister John Sparrow Thompson, angry at failed trade talks in 1888, privately complained to

his wife, Lady Thompson, that "These Yankee politicians are the lowest race of thieves in

existence."[101]

After the World War II years of close military and economic cooperation, President Harry S.

Truman said in 1947 that "Canada and the United States have reached the point where we can no

longer think of each other as 'foreign' countries."[102]

President John F. Kennedy told Parliament in Ottawa in May 1961 that "Geography has made us

neighbors. History has made us friends. Economics has made us partners. And necessity has made

us allies. Those whom nature hath so joined together, let no man put asunder."[103]

President Lyndon Johnson helped open Expo '67 with an upbeat theme, saying that "We of the

United States consider ourselves blessed. We have much to give thanks for. But the gift of

providence we cherish most is that we were given as our neighbours on this wonderful continent the

people and the nation of Canada." Remarks at Expo '67, Montreal, May 25, 1967.[104]

Trudeau Washington Press Club speech

MENU

0:00Trudeau's famous "sleeping with an elephant" quotation

Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau famously said that being America's neighbour "is like sleeping

with an elephant. No matter how friendly and even-tempered the beast, if one can call it that, one is

affected by every twitch and grunt."[105][106]

Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau, sharply at odds with the U.S. over Cold War policy, warned at a

press conference in 1971 that the overwhelming American presence posed "a danger to our national

identity from a cultural, economic and perhaps even military point of view."[107]

President Richard Nixon, in a speech to Parliament in 1972 was angry at Trudeau, declared that the

"special relationship" between Canada and the United States was dead. "It is time for us to

recognize," he stated, "that we have very separate identities; that we have significant differences;

and that nobody's interests are furthered when these realities are obscured." [108]

In late 2001, President George W. Bush did not mention Canada during a speech in which he

thanked a list of countries who had assisted in responding to the events of September 11, although

Canada had provided military, financial, and other support.[109]

Prime Minister Stephen Harper, in a statement congratulating Barack Obama on his inauguration,

stated that "The United States remains Canada’s most important ally, closest friend and largest

trading partner and I look forward to working with President Obama and his administration as we

build on this special relationship."[110]

President Barack Obama, speaking in Ottawa, Ontario at his first official international visit in

February 19, 2009, said, "I love this country. We could not have a better friend and ally." [111]

Territorial disputes[edit]

See also: List of areas disputed by Canada and the United States

These include maritime boundary disputes:

Dixon Entrance

Beaufort Sea

Strait of Juan de Fuca

San Juan Islands

Machias Seal Island  and North Rock

Territorial land disputes:

Aroostook War  (Maine boundary)

Alaska Boundary Dispute

Pig War

and disputes over the international status of the:

Northwest Passage

Inside Passage

Arctic disputes[edit]

A long-simmering dispute between Canada and the U.S. involves the issue of Canadian sovereignty over

the Northwest Passage (the sea passages in the Arctic). Canada’s assertion that the Northwest Passage

represents internal (territorial) waters has been challenged by other countries, especially the U.S., which

argue that these waters constitute an international strait (international waters). Canadians were alarmed

when Americans drove the reinforced oil tanker Manhattan through the Northwest Passage in 1969,

followed by the icebreaker Polar Sea in 1985, which actually resulted in a minor diplomatic incident. In

1970, the Canadian parliament enacted the Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act, which asserts

Canadian regulatory control over pollution within a 100-mile zone. In response, the United States in 1970

stated, "We cannot accept the assertion of a Canadian claim that the Arctic waters are internal waters of

Canada…. Such acceptance would jeopardize the freedom of navigation essential for United States

naval activities worldwide." A compromise of sorts was reached in 1988, by an agreement on "Arctic

Cooperation," which pledges that voyages of American icebreakers "will be undertaken with the consent

of the Government of Canada." However the agreement did not alter either country's basic legal

position. Paul Cellucci, the American ambassador to Canada, in 2005 suggested to Washington that it

should recognize the straits as belonging to Canada. His advice was rejected and Harper took opposite

positions. The U.S. opposes Harper's proposed plan to deploy military icebreakers in the Arctic to detect

interlopers and assert Canadian sovereignty over those waters.[112][113]

See also: Beaufort_Sea#Border_dispute

Common memberships[edit]

UKUSA Community

Australia

Canada

New Zealand

United Kingdom

United States of America

Canada and the United States both hold membership in a number of multinational organizations such as:

Arctic Council

Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation

Food and Agriculture Organization

G-8

G-10

G-20 major economies

International Chamber of Commerce

International Development Association

International Monetary Fund

International Olympic Committee

Interpol

North American Free Trade Agreement

North American Aerospace Defense Command

North American Numbering Plan

North Atlantic Treaty Organization

Organization of American States

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development

Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America

UKUSA Community

United Nations

UNESCO

World Health Organization

World Trade Organization

World Bank

Diplomatic missions[edit]

Canadian missions in the United States[edit]

Embassy of Canada in Washington, D.C.

Embassy of the United States in Ottawa

Canada's chief diplomatic mission to the United States is the Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C.. It

is further supported by many Consulates located through United States of America. [114] The Canadian

Government supports Consulates in several major U.S. cities

including: Anchorage, Atlanta‡, Boston‡, Buffalo‡, Chicago‡, Dallas‡, Denver‡,Detroit‡, Houston, Los

Angeles‡, Miami‡, Minneapolis‡, New York City‡, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Raleigh, Sacramento,San

Diego, San Francisco/Silicon Valley‡, San Juan,[115] and Seattle.‡

‡ denotes mission is Consulate General

There is also a trade office located in Palo Alto.

American missions in Canada[edit]

The United States's chief diplomatic mission to Canada is the United States Embassy in Ottawa. It is

further supported by many consulates located through Canada.[116] The American government supports

consulates in several major Canadian cities/regions including: Calgary, Halifax, Northwest

Territories‡, Nunavut‡, Montreal, Quebec City, Southwestern Ontario‡, Toronto, Vancouver, Winnipeg,

and Yukon‡.

‡ denotes mission is a Virtual Presence Post (VPP)