AFN and NCAI Renew Declaration of Kinship at UN Forum, Pushing for Indigenous Trade and Border Mobility Across the Canada-US Boundary

Leaders of the Assembly of First Nations and the National Congress of American Indians met during the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues in New York earlier this month to advance a renewed Declaration of Kinship and Cooperation, with the two organisations calling for the removal of tariffs on Indigenous trade across the Canada-United States border, recognition of long-standing Indigenous border mobility rights rooted in pre-Confederation treaties, and joint action on the international trade of medicines and cultural items. The declaration, which builds on a longer history of cross-border Indigenous diplomacy, has taken on heightened importance against the backdrop of an active trade dispute between Ottawa and Washington that has so far made little space for Indigenous economic interests.

What the declaration commits to

The renewed Declaration of Kinship and Cooperation sets out three immediate priorities for joint advocacy by the AFN and NCAI. The first is the recognition of Indigenous trade rights across the Canada-United States border, including the removal of tariffs on goods produced by Indigenous-owned businesses on either side of the boundary. The second is the affirmation of border mobility rights, including the rights of First Nations citizens to cross the border without paying duties on personal goods or being subject to certain customs procedures, as recognised in the 1794 Jay Treaty and other instruments. The third is the protection of trade in medicines, ceremonial items, and cultural goods that hold special significance for Indigenous peoples.

The declaration also includes commitments to joint advocacy at international forums, including the UN, on issues of climate justice, economic reconciliation, and Indigenous data sovereignty. The document is described by the two organisations as a working framework rather than as a formal treaty, although both organisations have indicated they will press governments on each side of the border to give legal effect to its provisions.

The Jay Treaty and border mobility

The Jay Treaty of 1794, signed between the United States and Great Britain, includes a provision that recognises the right of Indigenous peoples to cross the international boundary that became the Canada-United States border without being subject to ordinary customs and immigration procedures. The provision has had an asymmetric history. The United States has long recognised the right and continues to do so under modern statutes, although with administrative limitations. Canada has not given the same recognition in domestic law, and First Nations citizens crossing into Canada from the United States have generally been subject to ordinary customs procedures.

The AFN and NCAI have called for parity, with both governments recognising the rights set out in the treaty in their respective customs and immigration regimes. The renewed declaration notes that the current asymmetry produces practical hardships for First Nations citizens whose families and territories straddle the border, particularly in regions including the Akwesasne Mohawk territory, the Walpole Island and Ojibway territories of the Great Lakes region, and the Blackfoot Confederacy territories of the southern Prairies.

The tariff context

The declaration's call for the removal of tariffs on Indigenous trade arrives at a particularly fraught moment in the broader Canada-United States trade relationship. American tariffs imposed by the second Trump administration on Canadian steel, aluminum, autos, and softwood lumber have not included specific carve-outs for Indigenous-owned businesses, and the resulting trade pressure has affected Indigenous communities in industries including forestry, mining, and resource processing.

Several First Nations-owned forestry operations in British Columbia have reported that the softwood lumber tariffs have produced direct losses on shipments to American customers and have forced layoffs at community-owned mills. Indigenous-owned construction firms in southern Ontario and Manitoba working on cross-border projects have similarly reported tariff exposure on certain inputs.

The AFN has formally raised the issue with Ottawa, and AFN National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak has called on the Carney government to ensure that Indigenous economic interests are explicitly protected in any future round of tariff negotiations with Washington. Officials in the Department of Foreign Affairs have indicated they are aware of the issue but have not committed to specific carve-outs.

The Bill C-21 controversy

The cross-border declaration arrives at a moment when First Nations and Metis political relations within Canada are also under strain. The federal government's Bill C-21, which would recognise the right of self-government of the Red River Metis, has been opposed by the AFN, with the National Chief saying the bill threatens to create what she described as a hierarchy of rights by implementing Red River Metis self-government rights at the expense of First Nations treaty rights.

The AFN has called for the immediate withdrawal of Bill C-21 pending what it describes as full and meaningful consultation with First Nations whose territories overlap with the historic Red River Metis homeland, primarily across Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and the western edge of Ontario. The Manitoba Metis Federation, which has been a key partner of the federal government on the bill, has rejected the AFN position and continues to support the bill's adoption.

The federal Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations has indicated that the government remains committed to the legislation and to engaging with First Nations on the questions raised, but has not signalled any intention to withdraw the bill. The dispute is likely to feature in parliamentary committee proceedings on the bill in the coming weeks.

UNDRIP implementation and Canadian law

The Canadian government's broader framework for recognising Indigenous rights is the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, passed in 2021, which committed the federal government to bring its laws into alignment with the declaration over time. The AFN-NCAI declaration's call for Indigenous trade and mobility rights is consistent with Articles 36 and 37 of the United Nations declaration, which recognise the rights of Indigenous peoples to maintain contact and co-operation across international borders.

The federal government has been working since 2021 on an action plan to implement the UN declaration. The action plan has set out a series of priority areas including economic reconciliation, child welfare, language revitalisation, and self-government. Cross-border Indigenous trade and mobility have been less prominent in the action plan to date than other priorities, although the AFN has called for the action plan to be expanded to include explicit cross-border provisions.

Provincial and territorial reactions

Provincial and territorial reactions to the AFN-NCAI declaration have been measured. The premiers of British Columbia, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan have indicated openness to engaging with the cross-border framework on issues that affect First Nations within their provinces. The Ontario government has not commented publicly. Quebec has indicated it views the declaration primarily as a federal jurisdictional matter.

The territorial premiers of Yukon, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut have welcomed the declaration, particularly its focus on the international trade of medicines and cultural items. The territories have particular interests in cross-border Indigenous trade given the geographic proximity of several First Nations and Inuit communities to Alaska.

What it means for First Nations communities

For First Nations communities, the declaration provides a renewed framework for cross-border advocacy at a moment when both Canadian and American federal politics have been complicated for Indigenous interests. The AFN has signalled that the framework will be used to coordinate joint advocacy at the United Nations, in international trade forums, and in bilateral discussions between Ottawa and Washington.

For Indigenous-owned businesses, the practical effect of the declaration depends on whether either or both governments translate its commitments into operational changes in tariff and customs procedures. The AFN and NCAI have been clear that the declaration is intended to drive concrete policy change rather than to serve as a symbolic statement.

For First Nations citizens whose families and territories cross the border, the renewed focus on Jay Treaty rights and on broader mobility issues offers a path toward addressing long-standing grievances. The Akwesasne Mohawk Council has been particularly active on these issues and has welcomed the joint AFN-NCAI advocacy.

What's next

The AFN's annual general assembly is scheduled for the summer, where the declaration and its implementation are expected to be discussed in detail. The federal government has committed to engagement on the issues raised in the declaration but has not yet committed to specific operational changes. Officials in the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Crown-Indigenous Relations have indicated that the file is being coordinated across departments.

For the broader Canadian conversation, the AFN-NCAI declaration is a reminder that Indigenous rights and interests cut across the international border in ways that the conventional structures of trade policy and immigration management do not always recognise. As Canada and the United States renegotiate the terms of their trade and economic relationship, the question of how Indigenous rights and interests are accommodated within that relationship is one that the declaration has placed firmly back on the agenda.