Trade and Oil on Agenda

The United States is a major importer of Canadian oil, and Mr. Harper has been trying to win an agreement to exempt Canada`s vast tracts of oil sands, which contain up to 173 billion barrels of recoverable oil bound into sand and clay, from regulation. Mr. Obama is under intense pressure from environmentalists to resist that effort. Thursday`s visit is not expected to produce any detailed pact, but a White House official said the two countries would commit to working more closely together on research and information-sharing on energy and technology.In an interview with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation prior to his trip, Mr. Obama stopped short of using the word dirty, as environmentalists do, to describe the process of extracting oil from the sands. But he said extraction work there "creates a big carbon footprint."President Obama arrived here on Thursday morning for the first foreign trip of his administration, a visit that was expected to focus on the fragile world economy, the sagging auto industry, international trade, Afghanistan and energy -- in particular the question of how to turn Alberta`s oil sands into a clean source of power.Mr. Obama was greeted by the governor general of Canada, Michaëlle Jean, as well as the Canadian ambassador to the United States, Michael Wilson, and a retinue of red-jacketed Canadian Mounties after Air Force One touched down in a light snow at Ottawa International Airport shortly before 10:30 a.m. He is here for a string of official meetings and plans to hold a short news conference with Prime Minister Stephen Harper in the afternoon.Mr. Obama may also face tensions with Mr. Harper over the issue of trade; Canada is up in arms over a "Buy America" provision inserted by Congress into the $787 billion economic recovery package Mr. Obama just signed into law, and Canadians have not forgotten Mr. Obama`s campaign pledge to reopen negotiations on the North American Free Trade Agreement.


Opinion: In my opinion, the president made an important step towards smoothing over rough corners that Canada had with America. Talking about fragile world economy, the sagging auto industry, international trade, Afghanistan and energy. They also talked about Alberta's oil resources, as a future resource for clean fuel. America's attention to Canada is crucial because Canada is such an important trade partner to America. After a rough patch in regards to Russia's CF-18 flying into Canadian airspace, Canada showed some sort of action that it can defend themselves, which may have surprised the President in terms of swift action. There are many things that these countries can learn from one another that can help them to get out of this economic predicament.