U.S. Deputy Secretary Landau Meets Canadian Deputy Minister Morrison to Discuss Border Security, Western Hemisphere Relations, and World Cup Coordination

The U.S. Deputy Secretary of State is the second‑highest official in the State Department and the main deputy to the Secretary of State. The Deputy Secretary:

• Acts as the Secretary’s principal adviser and stand‑in (serving as Acting Secretary when the Secretary is absent or the job is vacant).
• Helps formulate and conduct U.S. foreign policy.
• Provides overall supervision and direction for the Department’s bureaus, offices, and overseas posts, including management of people, budgets, and major initiatives. Specific portfolios can change over time depending on the administration’s priorities.

David Morrison is a senior Canadian public servant who serves as the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs at Global Affairs Canada. The Deputy Minister is the top non‑political official in the department, responsible for day‑to‑day leadership of Canada’s foreign ministry and for advising the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Morrison is a career diplomat and policy official. Previous roles have included Deputy Minister of International Trade, Foreign and Defence Policy Advisor to the Prime Minister and G7 sherpa, Associate Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Assistant Deputy Minister for the Americas at Global Affairs Canada.

The Gang Suppression Force (GSF) is an international security mission in Haiti, created from the earlier Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS) and approved by the UN Security Council. It is a Kenya‑led multinational police and military force meant to support the Haitian National Police in combating powerful armed gangs, restoring basic security, and creating conditions for elections.

Reported progress includes:

• Deployment of contingents from Kenya and several other countries starting in mid‑2024 to conduct joint patrols with Haitian police.
• An October 2025 UN resolution transforming the MSS into the larger Gang Suppression Force, planned to grow to about 5,500 personnel.
• A December 2025 Haiti Force Generation Conference where 18 countries and organizations pledged personnel, funding, and technical support; the U.S. and Canada highlighted this “burden‑sharing” as providing the tools needed for the mission.

Independent analyses, however, note that by mid‑2025 the mission remained under‑staffed and under‑equipped and had achieved only limited improvements in Haiti’s overall security situation.

For a mega‑event like the 2026 FIFA World Cup shared by Canada, the U.S., and Mexico, governments usually coordinate in several areas:

• Security and intelligence: joint threat assessments; sharing intelligence on terrorism, organized crime, and cyber threats; coordinating policing in and around stadiums and fan zones.
• Border and travel: aligning visa rules and entry requirements; increasing staffing at land borders and airports; using pre‑clearance, trusted traveler programs, and advance passenger data to keep flows moving while screening for risks.
• Emergency management: common plans for disaster response, medical emergencies, and crowd incidents; interoperable communications among police, fire, and health services.
• Infrastructure and transport: coordinating cross‑border transport routes (air, road, rail), crowd management, and protection of critical infrastructure.
• Public communication: consistent messaging on travel rules, safety information, and what fans need to know.

U.S. documents on the 2026 tournament show DHS, CBP, FEMA, and local governments already planning together with Canada and Mexico on these types of measures.

At this diplomatic level, “Western Hemisphere” issues usually cover the Americas (North, Central, South America and the Caribbean). Common topics include:

• Migration and border management (e.g., movement of people through Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean).
• Public security: drug trafficking, gangs, firearms trafficking, and other transnational crime.
• Democracy and human rights: responses to authoritarian backsliding, political crises, and support for elections and rule of law.
• Economic ties: trade agreements, supply chains, energy, and development.
• Strategic competition and external influence (e.g., China, Russia) in the region.

Within the U.S. government, these are mainly handled at State by the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs (regional lead), working with functional bureaus such as the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, and economic and security bureaus. Other agencies (like DHS for border issues and USAID for development) are also closely involved, but State’s Western Hemisphere Affairs bureau is the central coordinator for regional diplomacy.

In State Department communications, a “readout” is a short official summary of a call or meeting with foreign leaders or officials. It is written by the Office of the Spokesperson and describes, in broad terms, who participated and what main topics were discussed, rather than providing a full transcript. Other U.S. government offices (like the White House) use the term the same way for their public summaries.