The New Democratic Party has been especially vocal in its opposition to the country’s presence in Afghanistan, but Wilson defends the mission as justified—in part because Canadians themselves could be targeted by extremists, just as easily as Americans were. “9/11 was a bit of a wake-up call,” the ambassador says. “You had weaknesses and we had weaknesses, and we have since worked very hard to address those weaknesses.” Thus, despite some consistent political dissent at home, Wilson says Canadians are unlikely to convince their conservative government to leave Afghanistan. “The government is committed to staying in Afghanistan…. We believe there is a very important job to be done there.” But he adds that the Canadian mission in Afghanistan isn’t all military. “We are also working with Afghanistan in governance areas—rule of law, judicial systems, the training of police forces, etc.,” he explains. “It’s quite a broad mission.” In fact, even if Canadian troops pull out in February 2009—as Prime Minister Harper told President Bush at a summit last summer, assuming he could not get a political mandate to extend the mission—Harper stressed that Canada’s role in Afghanistan with reconstruction and humanitarian assistance would continue well into 2011. “If we don’t stabilize the region, we also expose ourselves to terrorists,” Wilson says. “This is the message that has to be conveyed to Canadians to have their full support. It will be a continuing challenge to convey that.” An incident in June 2006 helped drive that message home. Canadian authorities arrested 17 people as part of a six-month probe that yielded a dozen Toronto-area men and five teens under the age of 18. According to police, the group “took steps to acquire components necessary to create explosive devices,” including three tons of ammonium nitrate fertilizer, commonly used in terrorist bombs. “The June event was a wake-up call,” Wilson says. “I think it made people realize we’re not immune.” To that end, Wilson lauded the cooperation of law enforcement on both sides of the border to prevent any such future incidents. “There are people who are concerned there could be terrorist activities in Canada,” he says. “That concern is addressed by the strong communication between the two countries’ intelligence agencies. “We work closely on this because we share the same concerns,” Wilson continues. “It’s that cooperative activity that is the main source of security on the northern border.” But he adds that Canadians often get frustrated by the perception that the United States is the only one at risk from a porous border. “Sometimes people think only of U.S. concerns,” he complains. “We also have concerns about things coming north—handguns and hard drugs are a big source of concern. “These concerns work both ways. We are equally concerned about security at the border, but at the same time we don’t want to address those concerns by effectively blocking the border,” Wilson says. “We want to make sure people can go back and forth.” Equally important is making sure goods are able to go back and forth. As the two countries prepare to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the U.S.-Canadian Free Trade Agreement in 2009, Wilson says he’s proud to have had a hand in getting the deal done, having served as Canada’s high-profile minister of finance at the time. The agreement, since superceded by NAFTA, removed all tariff and some non-tariff barriers to agricultural trade between Canada and the United States, allowing producers from both countries to be more competitive in meeting the demand for agricultural goods. Since the signing of the agreement, U.S. agricultural exports to Canada have increased substantially, and Canada is now the leading export market for 39 of the 50 U.S. states. “It really has resulted in the transformation of our economy,” Wilson says. “It has allowed Canadian companies to invest, consolidate and specialize in doing the things they do best.” Although Canada and the United States enjoy the most investment-heavy and complex trading partnership in the world, there are times when domestic interests trump bilateral cooperation. A prime example is the recent wrangling over the long-sought Northwest Passage, an area in the Arctic Sea covered by ice—for now. The passage had not been navigable to ship traffic without the need of an icebreaker until this past summer, when the ice receded as a result of climate change. A recent National Center for Atmospheric Research study found that the Arctic Ocean could be absent of any significant ice in the summers by 2040. This massive melting caused by global warming has created a navigable route between the Atlantic and Pacific, opening up a potentially major new international trade and travel thoroughfare. It could also make the Arctic seabed’s oil resources easier to obtain. But the race to lay claim to the Arctic’s bounty has pit major world powers against one another. Russia has already announced it will open new ports on the Arctic Sea as major petroleum hubs for the 21st century. Competing claims have also come in from the United States, Norway and Denmark. Canada, too, asserts is own sovereignty over the passage, a large chunk of which runs along the northern Canadian Arctic Archipelago. “We view those as Canadian waters,” Wilson bluntly told The Diplomat. Likewise, Prime Minister Harper told the U.S. Navy recently that it had to halt its nuclear submarine voyages through the Arctic Sea passage that winds through the hundreds of Canadian islands. But the United States isn’t listening. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack stated last summer: “We believe it is an international strait. It’s a longstanding policy of the U.S. government.” Despite friction over Arctic rights and looming questions over border control and Afghanistan, Canada is enjoying good news on the economic front. The country posted a record budget surplus in 2006—continuing a trend of surpluses every year since 1998, which has helped to slash the federal debt, boost the employment rate, and open up the possibility for a fresh wave of tax cuts. In fact, the economic boom helped the Canadian dollar, or loonie, surpass the U.S. dollar in parity last September for the first time since 1976 (although the dollar has bounced back somewhat since then). The economic boom also led to some speculation that Canada would hold elections in 2008 (minority governments in Canada tend to last about 18 months on average), but Harper has insisted that he will continue to govern with a minority and not call early elections. Wilson laughed when asked how long he would serve as Canada’s top diplomat in Washington. “It’s called at pleasure,” he says, referring to the prime minister’s ability to designate how long an ambassador stays. But until the time comes that he’s no longer needed in Washington, Wilson says he’s enjoying the city, from both a professional and personal standpoint. He and his wife frequent Washington’s various theaters regularly, and he likes hitting the links when he can steal away from the demands of the job. “I am a bit of a nut about golf, so I play it as often as I can,” Wilson confesses, citing Burning Tree in Bethesda, Md., as a favorite course. “Washington is a great city,” Wilson adds. “It’s a wonderful place to be an ambassador. There is a huge range of issues you can become engaged in.” Michael Coleman is a contributing writer or The Washington Diplomat.

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