WASHINGTON – The foreign ministers of Canada and the United States have jointly condemned the racist-fuelled violence in Charlottesville.
Chrystia Freeland and Rex Tillerson made it the focus of their public remarks in a brief exchange with reporters today.
Freeland visited the secretary of state in his office while she was in Washington for the opening round of NAFTA talks.
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Tillerson opened his remarks by noting that Canada and the U.S. are close friends with shared values — values that include freedom and tolerance.
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He said he wanted to add his condemnation over what happened in Virginia, where white supremacists gathered and an anti-racism protester was killed when a car plowed into a crowd of people.
Freeland offered her condolences, along with what she called an unequivocal condemnation of racist hatred.
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She said it’s important to speak out publicly against acts of hatred — to which Canada, she noted, is not immune, citing the case of the recent Quebec City mosque massacre.
Both ignored a shouted question about whether they agreed with the controversial nature of how the events were addressed by President Donald Trump.