New U.S. defence secretary chooses Canadian counterpart for his first call
Canada’s Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan received a “warm and cordial” call from his new U.S. counterpart, defence secretary James Mattis.
Sajjan shared the news on Twitter, as well as with reporters at the Liberal cabinet retreat in Calgary on Monday.
Just had a warm & cordial call w US SecDef Mattis. His first call, a testament to the excellent defence relationship between our nations.1/2
— Harjit Sajjan (@HarjitSajjan) January 23, 2017
Secretary of Defense Mattis and I agreed to meet in person very soon. 2/2
— Harjit Sajjan (@HarjitSajjan) January 23, 2017
“I was the first minister he called and I told him how honoured I was with that,” Sajjan said.
According to Global News, Sajjan went on to say that he didn’t discuss Canada’s future peacekeeping mission with Mattis. However, the pair did chat about the “mutual threat to our countries.”
The Liberal government was expected to announce a new peacekeeping mission by the end of last year, but has yet to do so.
A press release from the U.S. Department of Defense states that during their call, Mattis thanked Sajjan for his leadership and “the deep and enduring defense partnership between the United States and Canada.” It also states the two are committed to staying in close communication and look forward to meeting one another.
