Immigration Minister Sean Fraser travels to Washington on Tuesday
Immigration, Roxham Road and Immigration Issues Agreement on safe third countries will be at the heart of the discussions. -immigration-refugees-citizenship-1365.JPG” media=”(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 99999px)”/>
Federal Minister of 'Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Sean Fraser (File Photo)
Federal Immigration Minister Sean Fraser is traveling to Washington on Tuesday to meet with the United States Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
The information, first published by TVA Nouvelles, was confirmed late Monday evening by Radio-Canada.
MM. Fraser and Mayorkas will discuss immigration issues, Roxham Road and the Safe Third Country Agreement.
Last year, a record 39,171 people crossed the border irregularly at Roxham Road, according to the number of interceptions reported by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Until the beginning of the year, people who arrived by this route mostly stayed in Quebec, but since mid-February, asylum seekers have been sent outside Quebec, mainly in Ontario.
On February 21, Quebec Premier François Legault attacked his counterpart Justin Trudeau in an open letter to The Globe and Mail. in which he wrote that Mr. Trudeau's good intentions have become a real real problem for Quebec and Canada.
François Legault wants to increase the pressure on the federal government to act on the file of irregular immigration at Roxham Road.
Regarding the ;Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA), Ottawa and Washington seem to have divergent visions.
In early February, the United States Ambassador to Canada, David Cohen, said renegotiating the ETPS was not a priority for President Joe Biden's administration.
The Roxham Road is a symptom and we must rather attack the source of the problem, had indicated Mr. Cohen.
The next day, the Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau had assured that President Joe Biden knew very well that the renegotiation of the agreement is a priority for Canada. At that time, Mr. Trudeau even spoke of a shared priority on border issues between the two countries.
