Home The Ambassador Canada's chief representatives to the U.S. Michael Kergin Ambassador Kergin's Speeches May 30, 2003

Remarks on the Occasion of the Canadian Consulate General's 30th Anniversary

Atlanta, Georgia
May 30, 2003

Thank you Astrid for your kind introduction. Let me offer you and your staff my warmest congratulations on the occasion of the consulate's 30th anniversary. And I especially appreciate all the guests for sharing this celebration with us.

In 1973, Canadians and Americans had good reason to be optimistic about their future: the Vietnam War was coming to a close; the U.S. Open tennis tournament, for the first time, announced equal prizes for male and female athletes; Maynard Jackson became Atlanta's first African-American mayor; a handful of computer whiz kids began developing the internet protocols; and yes, Jimmy Carter was governor of Georgia.

Fast forward 30 years. Yet even now, I doubt how many of us have even begun to understand the opportunities and challenges lying ahead of us in this 21st century.

Gabriel García Márquez, the Colombian author and winner of the Nobel Prize for literature recently said this about the 21st century:

"It is a century that does not come ready-made, but rather ready to be forged by you, and it will only be as glorious as the furthest limits of your imagination."

It is hard to imagine two countries who have forged a more successful partnership than Canada and the United States. What makes the Canada-U.S. relationship unique is the creativity and resourcefulness with which we have been able to turn challenges into opportunities whether related to security, trade or other global issues. And this ability will serve us well as we navigate the perils of the 21st century.

Since September 11th, it is clear that there is no greater challenge facing the world today than the threat of terrorism. And the U.S. has no greater ally than Canada in the war against terrorism which, if recent incidents in Bali, Saudi Arabia, Morocco and Israel are indicators, will unfortunately continue for some time yet.

As part of our overseas contribution to the anti-terrorism effort, Canadian forces fought in Afghanistan in the thick of the early action shoulder-to-shoulder with the U.S. 101st Airborne. We have about 1200 forces in the Persian Gulf as part of Operation Enduring Freedom, with frigates and aircraft patrolling the gulf to ensure safe and secure maritime traffic.

Some 1600 Canadian troops will return to Afghanistan this summer in support of the International Security Assistance Forces (under NATO mandate) to help rout out terrorist elements and reinforce stability. We are determined to give democracy a chance in that troubled land.

In the case of Iraq, though, Canadians had a difficult decision. We were not persuaded of a direct connection between Saddam Hussein's regime and Al Qaeda. Nor did we find the threat of WMD in Iraq sufficient — to warrant preemptive military intervention without specific UN Security Council authorization — while international experts were there conducting robust inspections.

Nevertheless, Canada respected the U.S. decision to go into Iraq; our Prime Minister never opposed U.S. military intervention; and Canadians prayed for a speedy U.S. victory with a minimum of casualties. And an early, safe return of servicemen and women to the U.S.

Now that the military conflict in Iraq is over, Canada, with its strong tradition of assisting states recovering from conflict, has offered to help the U.S. and the UN address the dire needs of the Iraqi people.

As part of a $225-million financial contribution for humanitarian and reconstruction assistance, Canada is preparing to send airlift capacity to distribute food and medical supplies. We will deploy police, corrections and legal officers to help with training and advice on governance and security sector reform, once a structure is in place in Baghdad.

Terrorist attacks around the world have impelled us to improve security at home too. Following the September 11 attacks, Canada began identifying and freezing terrorist assets, and passed legislation to impede terrorist fund-raising. We tightened refugee regulations to ensure improved compliance and surveillance. Landmark legislation gave Canada's law enforcement agencies additional tools with which to shut down terrorist organizations.

Canada and the U.S. together developed a Smart Border Agreement in December 2001 which includes over 30 innovative arrangements for improving the security and efficiency of our common border, ranging from agreements on refugee issues to greater information-sharing between intelligence and law enforcement agencies.

We are also making use of state-of-the-art technologies to track, verify, and pre-clear selected shipments and individuals, so that our enforcement agents at border crossings can focus their attention on any traffic potentially posing a higher risk to our societies. Another motivation behind the "smart border" is to improve efficiency, reduce delays, and lower transaction costs.

Our border supports the world's largest trading relationship, with almost $1.2 billion in trade per day and over 200 million people crossing it per year. We are each other's most important trading partner.

For more than half a century, the U.S. has sold more goods to Canada than to any other country. It is remarkable when you consider that Canada, which has an economy that is less than a tenth the size of that of the U.S., absorbs almost one quarter of all U.S. products — more than Japan, Germany, Britain, Italy, China and Hong Kong combined! Thirty-nine states of the union export more goods to Canada than anywhere else in the world.

But NAFTA's effect has been more far-reaching than export figures; it has provided a legal and procedural framework under which economic integration is flourishing.

Increasingly Canadian and U.S. companies are approaching North America as a single market and factor this into their investment and production decisions. Conscious of the bottom line, they seek profitable advantage by benefiting from the strengths of each country.

As the private sector increasingly regards the North American market as a comprehensive commercial entity, so must governments develop policies and institutions which reflect this deeper economic interdependence. This is especially true today for the energy sector.

You might be surprised to hear that Canada is the largest foreign energy supplier to the U.S., providing:

• 94% of your natural gas imports;
• close to 100% of U.S. electricity imports, and
• more crude and refined oil products than any other foreign supplier (including Saudi Arabia). Indeed, Canada's oil reserves are the second largest in the world after Saudi Arabia, according to the Oil and Gas Journal, the "Moody's" of the world's oil business. The U.S. Energy Information Agency has recently adjusted its data to reflect this important fact.

(With ongoing instability in the Middle East, it should give you some peace of mind that about a third of your energy imports come from a friendly and safe neighbour next door.)

Numerous other examples of a North American or continental economy can be found right in the neighbourhood. Georgia's car industry is a large consumer of steel. Like our energy industries, the Canadian and U.S. steel industries are virtually integrated, thus holding out the promise that North American producers will not be subject to anti-dumping duties from their NAFTA partners.

Another excellent example of the state of Georgia's northern interests is Atlanta-based Home Depot. Home Depot has over 60 outlets right across Canada. It is also an important U.S. purchaser of Canadian softwood lumber. Home Depot, like many other American consumers and businesses, relies on Canadian lumber which constitutes about one third of the total lumber used for construction in the U.S.

I am aware that the subject of softwood lumber is an important issue here in the south. Yet, when we speak of Canadian and Southern softwood, we are talking apples and oranges. Each softwood is distinct and is used for different purposes: Canadian lumber for housing frames and joists; yellow pine for house siding, floors and decks.

Proponents of affordable housing in the U.S. support Canada's efforts to seek a repeal of the 27% tariff imposed on Canadian softwood lumber — a tariff which the Canadian government is vigorously contesting in NAFTA and the WTO as a violation of U.S. international trade obligations. A very recent decision by the WTO, I believe bolsters the Canadian case. Yet, there is still hope for a bilaterally negotiated settlement, which could put an end to this decades old trade irritant and save us millions in lawyers fees.

(Not that I wish to deny lawyers their due. Indeed, my son is studying to be one! Rather I want him to be employed elsewhere than in softwood lumber litigation.)

Transportation and forest products were the Peach State's largest imports from Canada last year. Georgia bought about $3 billion in Canadian exports, and sold about $3.4 billion — a quarter of your total exports — to Canada, making Canada your largest export market — larger than your next four export destinations combined!To the extent that Georgia relies on Canada as a robust consumer of your goods, it is important for you to be aware then that, despite a global economic downturn, Canada's economy is still doing well.

The OECD predicts that Canada will continue to lead the G-7 in growth this year and next year. Our growth, combined with prudent fiscal management over the years, has permitted reductions in our corporate tax rates, making them highly competitive internationally.

There were 560,000 new jobs created in Canada last year, quite an achievement when one considers that the total workforce consists of about 16 million people. One third of Canadian jobs is linked in some way to the international economy. Canada is a trading nation, so our prosperity relies on rules-based regimes provided by the world trade organization (WTO), NAFTA, and, eventually, the FTAA.

Canada and the U.S. are important partners in the WTO. Both countries are working closely together to try to reduce agricultural subsidies in developed countries. High agricultural subsidies in the EU, Japan, and to a lesser degree in the U.S., diminish the chances for survival of the largely agrarian developing countries in the one area in which they should be competitive in world markets.

Currently, subsidies by OECD countries represent two-thirds of Africa's total GDP, or $360 billion dollars annually ($1 billion per day).

Allowing third world economies to advance and prosper is in everyone's interest. Not only can these countries become interesting markets for our own goods, but more importantly, a healthier third world economy breeds stability, fosters democratic and social development.

Furthermore, by encouraging coordinated action to combat the illegal drug trade and reducing ugly jealousies bred of highly disparate income levels, world security is enhanced.

President Bush called attention to this link between liberalized trade, economic development and security when he announced his middle east trade initiative two weeks ago. It is also the philosophy that drives our interest in the FTAA, which would encompass all the democracies of the western hemisphere.

The Americas contain both some of the world's wealthiest economies and some of its smallest and most vulnerable. Generally though, these economies share a distinguishing characteristic of openness and a growing reliance on international trade and investment as a means of promoting prosperity.

The FTAA potential is considerable: the Americas make up a market with a combined population of over 800 million and a combined GDP of $17 trillion. This is about twice the population and the GDP of the European Union!

Canada and the U.S. are strong partners in developing and promoting the early implementation of a free trade arrangement stretching between the globe's two poles. And Atlanta's bid to host the FTAA secretariat headquarters demonstrates its shared enthusiasm for this vision.

We know that this is a serious bid.

And Canada's decision thirty years ago to move our consulate in the southeastern U.S. speaks to Atlanta's importance as a commercial, scientific and political centre.

My visit to Atlanta coincides with that of Canada's Minister of Health, the honourable Anne McLellan, who is here visiting the Centers for Disease Control. Canadians are most grateful to the CDC for sending officials to Toronto to observe and advise our medical experts handling last month's SARS outbreak. It is yet another example of Canadians and Americans working cooperatively and constructively to avert calamity.

In my view the strength of the Canada-U.S. friendship attests to the creativity and the commitment with which our peoples, and their governments, find innovative ways to improve our well-being. In this, the Canada-U.S. relationship is without peer.

The Smart Border Accord, our free trade agreements, our unique joint defence arrangements, and even our collaboration on public health and safety concerns are viewed by the international community as examples of what is possible when we follow Gabriel Márquez' injunction not to limit our imagination.

We are neighbours, who have succeeded not only in keeping the peace between us, but even more remarkably, in greatly enhancing the quality of our shared North American space.

I truly believe that our shared future will reach the furthest limits of our imagination.

And so as we celebrate this 30th anniversary of Canada's consular presence in Atlanta, let me pay tribute to the enduring friendship between the great state of Georgia and the country I have the honour to represent. We have both grown and flourished together.

And this friendship is certainly emblematic of the larger partnership between Canada and the United States.

Thank you.