Thread by @globeandmail

The Canadian government is invoking a 1977 treaty with the United States to formally commence negotiations over the fate of Line 5, a vital petroleum pipeline that faces a threat of shutdown from the State of Michigan.

tgam.ca/line-5-pipeline

The move follows a breakdown in court-ordered mediation talks last month between Enbridge and Michigan, where Governor Gretchen Whitmer ordered Line 5 to cease shipping petroleum across the state’s Straits of Mackinac waterway.

tgam.ca/line-5-pipeline

The 1977 Pipeline Transit treaty was designed was designed to ensure uninterrupted transmission of petroleum between the two countries.

tgam.ca/line-5-pipeline

If formal negotiations between Canada and the United States fail to resolve the matter, Canada has the right under the treaty to escalate matters further by requesting binding arbitration.

tgam.ca/line-5-pipeline

This represents an escalation of this dispute between Canada and the United States, one where U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration has been reluctant to intervene.

tgam.ca/line-5-pipeline