MNI POLICY: Trump: Canada Border Shut to Non-Essential Traffic

By Evan Ryser

     WASHINGTON (MNI) - President Donald Trump said Wednesday the U.S. border

with Canada will be temporarily closed to 'non-essential traffic,' a move with

little precedent among the world's biggest trade partners.

     Trump wrote on Twitter: "We will be, by mutual consent, temporarily closing

our Northern Border with Canada to non-essential traffic. Trade will not be

affected. Details to follow!"

     The news comes as the deadly coronavirus outbreak continues to spread,

despite increasingly strict quarantine measures around the world. As the number

of cases grow, experts are warning that life worldwide will be severely

disrupted for many months. 

     Canada and the U.S. have long touted having the world's longest undefended

border and there is little precedent for shutting it since the War of 1812

settled most tensions between the colonies that grew into their modern-day

nations. 

     The U.S. restricted Canadian flows for a short period after the 2001 terror

attacks on New York and Washington, but the two countries rely on each other for

vital shipments of military components, food and medical supplies that are

almost impossible to disentangle on short notice.

     Canada and the U.S. are the world's largest trade partners with about CAD 1

trillion of annual commerce, according to a briefing book given to Canada's

prime minister after last fall's election. 

     There were 25 million U.S. visits to Canada in 2019, while Canadians took

43.8 million trips to the U.S. last year, according to Canadian government

figures.

--MNI Washington Bureau; +1 202 371 2121; email: evan.ryser@marketnews.com

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