The Shamrock Summit was the colloquial name given to the March 17–18, 1985 meeting between Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and US President Ronald Reagan in Quebec City. It gained this nickname because of the Irish background of the two leaders and because the meeting started on St. Patrick's Day. The summit was capped by a televised gala, which ended with Mulroney, Reagan and their wives singing "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling" at the Grand Théâtre de Québec, which publicly exemplified the camaraderie between the two leaders.[1][2][3]
Documents later revealed that American officials saw the summit as a chance to mend relations between the two countries in the post-Pierre Trudeau era.[4]
Among the many issues discussed in a busy 24-hour schedule were military planning, upgrading the DEW line to use modern electronics, a landmark agreement on the control of acid rain, and the formal signing of the Pacific Salmon Treaty[5] and the "Canada-US Declaration on Goods and Services", the first major step towards the 1988 Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement.
- ^ Ferguson, Will (1997). "11". Why I Hate Canadians. Vancouver, BC, Canada: Douglas & McIntyre. pp. 112–113. ISBN 1-55054-600-7.
- ^ Steele, Andrew. "Mr. Angry and Mr. Happy". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved April 13, 2010.
- ^ "History Through Our Eyes: March 17, 1985, the Shamrock Summit". Montreal Gazette. 14 March 2022. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
- ^ "Shamrock Summit seen as 'turning point' for U.S.-Canada relations", CBC News, 18 August 1999
- ^ "Home". psc.org.