North American leaders confront rising tide of protectionism

OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — North America’s leaders, at their summit in the Canadian capital, are confronting a rising tide of economic protectionism and nationalism.

President Barack Obama arrived in Ottawa for talks on Wednesday with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto. Obama planned to address the Canadian Parliament — the ninth American leader to do so and the first since Bill Clinton in 1995.

Trade, the environment and fallout from Britain’s decision to leave the European Union were expected to top the agenda.

The attack on a Turkish airport in which 41 people died on Tuesday was adding to the urgency of discussions about how the three countries can work together to enhance security.

Cooperation on a range of issues was a theme less than a week after Britain’s vote to leave the EU highlighted public fears about globalization.

The North American leaders’ meeting came as Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for U.S. president, blamed globalization for the loss of millions of manufacturing jobs and threatens to extricate the U.S. from the North American Free Trade Agreement, in effect since 1994. Trump on Tuesday also pledged that as president, he would withdraw from an agreement among 12 Pacific Rim nations that has yet to take effect. And it was only last week that Britain voted to leave the European Union.

Canada’s international trade minister, Chrystia Freeland, noted that the meeting of the three pro-trade leaders was taking place at a pivotal moment.

“This is a time when a lot of leaders in the world are talking about building walls,” Freeland said in an interview with The Associated Press. “What you are going to hear from the leaders of Canada, the United States and Mexico is that we are a continent and we believe in building bridges. We really believe in the open society. Those are core Canadian values, open to immigration, open to visitors and open to trade.”

Trump also has advocated building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Trudeau pointed to the North American example of economic integration and warned of the risks of protectionism and nationalism.

“Better collaboration, better partnerships are a path to prosperity,” Trudeau said Tuesday. “And that’s a compelling example that we want to showcase at a time where, unfortunately, people are prone to turning inwards which will unfortunately be at the cost of economic growth and their own success.”