Canada-U.S. border closure extended but Trump, Trudeau far apart on next steps

CBC News asked both the Canadian and U.S. governments about the fate of the border closure and got disparate answers.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said the two countries are exploring the loosening of some restrictions. The department's acting secretary, Chad Wolf, echoed this sentiment in a tweet on Monday.

"We are working closely with ... Canada to identify safe criteria to ease the restrictions in the future and support our border communities," he wrote.

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But a spokesperson for Bill Blair — Canada's public safety minister — offered a less definitive statement on the next steps.

"We will continue to evaluate the best public health information available to us to make a decision on when and how to reopen our border," the spokesperson said in an email.

"This decision will be made in Canada."

According to Reuters — which spoke with well-placed Washington and Ottawa sources last month — the U.S. had floated the idea of relaxing some border restrictions, but Canadian officials showed little enthusiasm.

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