After a 14-year hiatus, Canada has reopened a consulate in Phoenix. Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs and other leaders gathered near Central Avenue and Thomas Road for the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Canada is one of Arizona’s biggest international trade partners, behind only Mexico and Taiwan. And Arizona attracts tens of thousands of Canadian snowbirds during the winter months.
But the northern country had to shutter its Phoenix consulate in 2012 due to federal cuts.
Jérôme Pischella is the consulate's head of office.
“We buy $2.8 billion U.S. dollars worth of goods and services from Arizona. And we also have a lot of Canadian companies that want to do business in Arizona or open a subsidiary in Arizona. We understand that Arizona is open for business," he said.
Canadian officials have acknowledged a strained relationship with the U.S. under the Trump administration. But Pischella says these tensions are temporary and that Canada is an important long-term trade partner.
“We want to see a strong North American partnership, and we see Arizona as a key state in the United States to get that growing," he said.
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