Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets with LA Mayor Eric Garcetti

ByABC7.com staff KABC logo
Saturday, February 10, 2018
Canadian PM Justin Trudeau meets with LA Mayor Garcetti
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau continued his latest U.S. visit at the Griffith Observatory on Saturday.

GRIFFITH PARK, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau continued his latest U.S. visit at the Griffith Observatory on Saturday.

Trudeau met with Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti for a morning hike a Griffith Park. Garcetti later thanked the prime minster for speaking with local officials during his busy visit to California.

Trudeau also met privately with Gov. Jerry Brown and Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday.

He was at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, where he spoke about trade relations involving Canada and the U.S.

He said the North American Free Trade Agreement is a success that needs to be modernized, not abandoned. His comments come as President Donald Trump has threatened to withdraw from the 24-year-old pact.

The visit there holds significance because it was where in 1988 President Ronald Reagan and Prime Minister Brian Mulroney signed the first Free Trade Agreement, a precursor to NAFTA.

Trudeau promoted his country as a destination for California technology firms uneasy with shifting U.S. immigration policy.

After the speech, a California Highway Patrol motorcycle officer who was part of Trudeau's motorcade crashed and was sent to a hospital with moderate injuries, the Ventura County Fire Department said. The vehicle carrying the prime minister was not involved and he was not hurt.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.