WASHINGTON — Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand had her first official meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington on Thursday amid ongoing tensions in the bilateral relationship.

Anand and Rubio shook hands in front of Canadian and American flags in a room of the U.S. State Department. Neither responded to questions from reporters.

The State Department said Anand and Rubio discussed efforts to support Haiti's security, peace negotiations to end the Russia-Ukraine war and ways to strengthen the western hemisphere's response to China.

The State Department said they also talked about "Hamas's ongoing obstruction of peace in Gaza."

U.S. President Donald Trump last month criticized Prime Minister Mark Carney's move to recognize a Palestinian state.

The State Departmen

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