Chair and honourable members, it's a pleasure to appear before the special committee on Canada-U.S. relations. Likewise, it's good to see some familiar faces from the international trade committee around the virtual room. The chamber looks forward to working with this committee at all stages of its work on Line 5 as well as on the other matters it will take up in future studies.
For those I have not met before, my name is Mark Agnew. I'm the vice-president, policy and international, at the Canadian chamber. I'll be splitting the opening remarks with my colleague, Aaron Henry.
Members of the committee know the importance of Line 5 to Canada's energy security and economic competitiveness. In conversation with our members on the priorities we need to advance in the North American context, energy issues are a foundational element. Foreign policy and international relations can seem abstract at times, but Line 5 is a tangible issue with a real impact on Canada, as we'll explain in a few moments. Although others have said it before, it is worth underscoring that Line 5 is not Keystone XL. We were disappointed to see Keystone XL's permit cancelled, yet Line 5 is materially different as a piece of infrastructure already in use.
Disputes between the closest of allies happen. Although ideally we would resolve our disputes through diplomacy and advocacy with U.S. decision-makers, history has shown that this is not always the case, as we've seen with softwood lumber. We welcome the government's efforts on this file, and encourage it to continue to make the case that Canadian and, importantly, American interests are well served with Line 5 in operation. However, it does on occasion become necessary to use treaty-based mechanisms to protect our interests, as we have seen with other bilateral irritants in the North American context.
I will now turn it over to my colleague, Aaron Henry, to discuss in more detail our views on the situation.