After spending the weekend with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, President Donald Trump will finally meet the leader of one of the U.S.’ neighbors in person. Trump met with Canadian Prime Minster Justin Trudeau at the White House for the first time on February 13. The two leaders held a joint press conference at 2 p.m. ET in the East Room. You can watch the event above.
Trump met Trudeau in Washington at 11 a.m., and he had a roundtable meeting at 12:15 p.m. in the cabinet room. Unlike the full weekend planned with Abe, Trump has nothing on the schedule with Trudeau after their press conference.
During the press conference, Trump did not make any comments on the controversy National Security Adviser Michael Flynn. Jonathan Karl of ABC News said he did try to ask Trump about Flynn, who spoke with the Russian ambassador before Trump took office, but Trump did not answer.
For the record – I asked the President if he still has confidence in General Flynn. He sure seemed to hear the question but did not answer
Aside from the 25-year age gap between the two leaders, there are several differences between Trump and Trudeau. The Liberal Party leader famously welcomed refugees to Canada after Trump signed an immigration executive order in January that put a hold on refugees entering the U.S.
To those fleeing persecution, terror & war, Canadians will welcome you, regardless of your faith. Diversity is our strength #WelcomeToCanada
As CBS News notes, Canada has welcomed over 39,000 Syrian refugees since Trudeau’s Liberal Party took over leadership of the government.
“The Prime Minister is looking forward to discussing the successes of Canada’s immigration and refugee policy with the President when they next speak,” a spokeswoman for Trudeau told the Associated Press in January.
Even before Trump’s inauguration, Trudeau was critical of the new president. During a town hall in Ontario in early January, Trudeau vowed to work with his American counterparts, but said, “There are things that we hold dear that the Americans haven’t prioritized.”
“And I’m never going to 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,” Trudeau said at that town hall.
On Wednesday, Trump has a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.