Source: United States Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn)
Klobuchar serves as Chair of the Canada-United States Inter-Parliamentary Group
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) issued the statement below after attending a meeting yesterday with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau held by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY).
“As Chair of the Canada-United States Inter-Parliamentary Group, I have worked closely with Canadian officials over the years to keep the relationship between our two countries strong and support our economies as trading partners. At yesterday’s meeting with Prime Minister Trudeau, I continued to advocate for the need to eliminate barriers for cross-border travel and raised the importance of having parity in coronavirus testing requirements along our northern border. The conversation was productive, and I will continue to work with Canadian officials to adjust these requirements.”
Last week, Klobuchar and Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Mike Crapo (R-ID) sent a letter asking the Canadian government to help address challenges created by its border testing policy, specifically requesting parity in the testing requirements.
Klobuchar was a leading advocate for safely opening the United States-Canada border.
In October, Klobuchar led a bipartisan group of her colleagues in seeking clarification from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky on the medical justifications for the United States’ ban on all travelers from entering the country for non-essential purposes via land, but not via plane. In September, Klobuchar also urged the Biden Administration to end land-crossing restrictions.
In May, Klobuchar sent a letter to Kirsten Hillman, Ambassador of Canada to the U.S., calling for the easing of travel restrictions impacting Northwest Angle residents. Shortly after, several restrictions were eliminated. This also followed a meeting of the Canada-U.S. Interparliamentary Group that was chaired by Klobuchar where she led a comprehensive discussion between 10 United States Senators and 14 Canadian Parliamentarians on topics of mutual concern. During the meeting, Klobuchar urged action to begin safely easing border restrictions.
In April, Klobuchar sent a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas urging them to work with the Canadian government to explore options to safely ease some border restrictions between the U.S. and Canada.
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