U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Ottawa today, where he will meet with Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

The trio will sit down for formal talks on support for Ukraine, human rights in Iran and North American refugee policy.

They'll also be speaking about the humanitarian crisis in Haiti, which has called for foreign military intervention.

Joly says Washington and Ottawa want to deepen ties ahead of major summits next month by the G20 and Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forums.

Blinken's two-day visit ends in Montreal, where he will visit a lithium recycling plant and talks will focus on trade and electric vehicles.

His first official visit to Canada comes less than a month after Joly's trip to Washington.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 27, 2022.