Ottawa and Washington agree new border regime

Justin Trudeau’s government announced a major shift in how Canada and the US handle asylum claims, a move that effectively closes a controversial border crossing, after meetings in Ottawa with Joe Biden.

Under the deal, which Canadian officials hope will temper the increase in irregular border crossings in recent months, Canada will bring in 15,000 more South and Central American migrants to Canada. The prime minister’s office said in a statement the agreement would ensure more “fairness” in migration between the two countries. The breakthrough on irregular migration was one of a handful of new policies and funding efforts announced by the two countries last Friday.

In recent years, tens of thousands of migrants have circumvented an agreement that covered land-based ports of entry but not irregular or unofficial crossings along the 8,850km US-Canada border. Now officials can turn back migrants attempting to cross at unofficial border points. Last year, nearly 40,000 people entered Canada at Roxham Road, an informal crossing in remote New York state.