PM Trudeau in Ireland ahead of G20 meeting in Hamburg

OTTAWA – Justin Trudeau is in Ireland to make the first stop on a week-long European visit which will wrap up with a G20 meeting in Hamburg, Germany.
The focus there will likely not be on Trudeau — but on German Chancellor Angela Merkel and U-S President Donald Trump.
In a speech last week to the German parliament that laid out her priorities for the meeting, Merkel delivered a pointed critique of Trump’s now-infamous “America First” doctrine without ever once mentioning his name.
Trump, for his part, has escalated the war of words with Merkel, using familiar rhetoric about a “massive trade deficit” the U-S has with Germany and threats to slap import taxes on German-made cars.
Into this mix steps Trudeau — more philosophically aligned with Merkel and Emmanuel Macron, France’s new president, but shackled to the U-S through economic and geographic ties.
After today’s visit in Dublin with Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar to discuss the Canada-E-U trade deal known as CETA, Trudeau will head to Scotland to meet with the Queen to mark Canada’s 150th birthday.