And certainly, we’re more secure when we stand united against terrorist networks and ideologies that have reached to the very doorstep of this hall. We honor all those taken from us by violent extremists, including Canadians John Ridsdel and Robert Hall. (Applause.) With Canada’s additional contributions, including training Iraqi forces, our coalition is on the offensive across Iraq, across Syria. And we will destroy the terrorist group ISIL. (Applause.) We will destroy them. 

We’ll continue helping local forces and sharing intelligence, from Afghanistan to the Philippines, so that we're pushing back comprehensively against terrorist networks. And in contrast to the hatred and the nihilism of terrorists, we’ll work with partners around the world, including, particularly, Muslim communities, to offer a better vision and a path of development, and opportunity, and tolerance. (Applause.) Because they are, and must be, our partners in this effort. (Applause.) 

Meanwhile, when nations violate international rules and norms -- such as Russia’s aggression against Ukraine -- the United States and Canada stand united, along with our allies, in defense of our collective security. (Applause.) Doing so requires a range of tools, like economic sanctions, but it also requires that we keep our forces ready for 21st century missions, and invest in new capabilities. As your ally and as your friend, let me say that we’ll be more secure when every NATO member, including Canada, contributes its full share to our common security. (Applause.) Because the Canadian armed forces are really good -- (applause) -- and if I can borrow a phrase, the world needs more Canada. NATO needs more Canada. (Applause.) We need you. We need you.  

Just as we join together in our common defense, so must we work together diplomatically, particularly to avert war. Diplomacy results are rarely quick, but it turns out even the most intractable conflicts can be resolved. Here in our own hemisphere, just in the last few weeks, after half a century of war, Colombia is poised to achieve an historic peace. (Applause.) And the nations of North America will be an important partner to Colombia going forward, including working to remove landmines. 

Around the world, Canadian and American diplomats working together can make a difference. Even in Syria, where the agony and the suffering of the Syrian people tears at our hearts, our two nations continue to be leaders in humanitarian aid to the Syrian people. And although a true resolution of this conflict so far has eluded us, we know that the only solution to this civil war is a political solution, so that the Syrian people can reclaim their country and live in peace. And Canadians and Americans are going to work as hard as we can to make that happen. (Applause.) I should add that here in the nation of Lester Pearson, we reaffirm our commitment to keep strengthening the peacekeeping that saves lives around the world.

There is one threat, however, that we cannot solve militarily, nor can we solve alone -- and that is the threat of climate change. Now, climate change is no longer an abstraction. It's not an issue we can put off for the future. It is happening now. It is happening here, in our own countries. The United States and Canada are both Arctic nations, and last year, when I became the first U.S. President to visit the Arctic, I could see the effects myself. Glaciers -- like Canada’s Athabasca Glacier -- are melting at alarming rates. Tundra is burning. Permafrost is thawing. This is not a conspiracy. It's happening. Within a generation, Arctic sea ice may all but disappear in the summer. 

And so skeptics and cynics can insist on denying what’s right in front of our eyes. But the Alaska Natives that I met, whose ancestral villages are sliding into the sea -- they don't have that luxury. They know climate change is real. They know it is not a hoax. And from Bangladesh to the Pacific islands, rising seas are swallowing land and forcing people from their homes. Around the world, stronger storms and more intense droughts will create humanitarian crises and risk more conflict. This is not just a moral issue, not just a economic issue, it is also an urgent matter of our national security.

And for too long, we’ve heard that confronting climate change means destroying our own economies. But let me just say, carbon emissions in the United States are back to where they were two decades ago, even as we’ve grown our economy dramatically over the same period. Alberta, the oil country of Canada, is working hard to reduce emissions while still promoting growth. (Applause.) 

So if Canada can do it, and the United States can do it, the whole world can unleash economic growth and protect our planet. We can do this. (Applause.) We can do it. We can do this. We can help lead the world to meet this threat. 

Already, together in Paris, we achieved the most ambitious agreement in history to fight climate change. Now let’s bring it into force this year. (Applause.) With our agreement with Mexico that we announced today, let’s generate half the electricity on this continent from clean energy sources within a decade. That's achievable. (Applause.) Let’s partner in the Arctic to help give its people the opportunity they deserve, while conserving the only home they know. And building on the idea that began in Montreal three decades ago, let’s finally phase down dangerous HFC greenhouse gases. This is the only planet we’ve got. And this may be the last shot we’ve got to save it. And America and Canada are going to need to lead the way. (Applause.) We're going to have to lead the way.   

Just as we are joined in our commitment to protecting the planet, we are also joined in our commitment to the dignity of every human being. We believe in the right of all people to participate in society. We believe in the right of all people to be treated equally, to have an equal shot at success. That is in our DNA, the basic premise of our democracies. 

I think we can all agree that our democracies are far from perfect. They can be messy, and they can be slow, and they can leave all sides of a debate unsatisfied. Justin is just getting started. (Laughter.) So in case you hadn't figured that out, that's where this gray hair comes from. (Laughter.) But more than any other system of government, democracy allows our most precious rights to find their fullest expression, enabling us, through the hard, painstaking work of citizenship, to continually make our countries better. To solve new challenges. To right past wrongs.

And, Prime Minister, what a powerful message of reconciliation it was -- here and around the world -- when your government pledged a new relationship with Canada’s First Nations. (Applause.)  

Democracy is not easy. It’s hard. Living up to our ideals can be difficult even in the best of times. And it can be harder when the future seems uncertain, or when, in response to legitimate fears and frustrations, there are those who offer a politics of “us” versus “them,” a politics that scapegoats others -- the immigrant, the refugee, someone who seems different than us. We have to call this mentality what it is -- a threat to the values that we profess, the values we seek to defend. 

It’s because we respect all people that the world looks to us as an example. The colors of the rainbow flag have flown on Parliament Hill. They have lit up the White House. That is a testament to our progress, but also the work that remains to ensure true equality for our fellow citizens who are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. (Applause.)   

Our Muslim friends and neighbors who run businesses, and serve in our governments and in our armed forces, and are friends with our children, play on our sports teams -- we've got to stand up against the slander and the hate leveled against those who look or worship differently. That's our obligation. That's who we are. That's what makes America special. That's what makes Canada special. (Applause.) Here. Here in Canada. (Applause.)

Here in Canada, a woman has already risen to the highest office in the land. In America, for the first time, a woman is the presumptive nominee of a major party and perhaps President. (Applause.) I have a bias on these issues -- (laughter) -- but our work won’t be finished until all women in our country are truly equal -- paid equally, treated equally, given the same opportunities as men, when our girls have the same opportunities as our boys. (Applause.) That's who we need to be. (Applause.)  

And let me say this -- because I don't feel particularly politically correct on this issue -- I don't believe that these are American values or Canadian values or Western values. I believe, and Justin believes, and I hope all of you believe, these are universal values. And we must be bold in their defense, at home and around the world. (Applause.) And not shy away from speaking up on behalf of these values of pluralism and tolerance and equality. (Applause.) 

I fear sometimes that we are timid in defense of these values. That’s why I will continue to stand up for those inalienable rights, here in our own hemisphere -- in places like Cuba and Venezuela -- but also in more distant lands. For the rights of citizens in civil society to speak their mind and work for change. For the right of journalists to report the truth. For the right of people of all faiths to practice their religion freely. Those things are hard, but they’re right. They’re not always convenient, but they’re true.

In the end, it is this respect for the dignity of all people, especially the most vulnerable among us, that perhaps more than anything else binds our two countries together. Being Canadian, being American is not about what we look like or where our families came from. It is about our commitment to a common creed. And that’s why, together, we must not waver in embracing our values, our best selves. And that includes our history as a nation of immigrants, and we must continue to welcome people from around the world. (Applause.)   

The vibrancy of our economies are enhanced by the addition of new, striving immigrants. But this is not just a matter of economics. When refugees escape barrel bombs and torture, and migrants cross deserts and seas seeking a better life, we cannot simply look the other way. We certainly can't label as possible terrorists vulnerable people who are fleeing terrorists. (Applause.) 

We can insist that the process is orderly. We can insist that our security is preserved. Borders mean something. But in moments like this, we are called upon to see ourselves in others, because we were all once strangers. If you weren't a stranger, your grandparents were strangers. Your great-grandparents were strangers. They didn’t all have their papers ready. They fumbled with language faced discrimination, had cultural norms that didn’t fit. At some point, somewhere, your family was an outsider. So the mothers, the fathers, the children we see today -- they’re us. We can’t forsake them.

So, as Americans and Canadians, we will continue to welcome refugees, and we can ensure that we're doing so in a way that maintains our security. We can and we will do both. (Applause.) We can and we will do both.   

We’re increasing our support to Central America, so that fewer families and children attempt the dangerous journey north. This fall at the United Nations, we’ll host a global summit on refugees, because in the face of this crisis, more nations need to step up and meet our basic obligations to our fellow human beings. And it will be difficult, and budgets are tight, and there are legitimate issues and not everybody is going to be helped. But we can try. People of goodwill and compassion show us the way. 

Greek islanders pulling families to shore. And Germans handing out sweets to migrants at railway stations. A synagogue in Virginia inviting Syrian refugees to dinner. And here, in Canada, the world has been inspired as Canadians across this country have opened up their hearts and their homes. And we’ve watched citizens knitting tuques to keep refugees warm in the winter. (Laughter.) And we’ve seen your Prime Minister welcome new arrivals at the airport, and extend the hand of friendship and say, “You’re safe at home now.”