Trudeau meets with Canada’s provincial leaders to plan for Trump tariffs | International Trade News

0
40
Doug Ford in blue

Montreal, Canada – Canada's outgoing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is meeting with provincial leaders to discuss looming tariffs that U.S. President-elect Donald Trump plans to impose on Canadian goods next week on his first day in office.

In a social media post Wednesday, Trudeau said, “None of us want tariffs to undermine a successful partnership between Canada and the United States.”

“But we will be ready with a strong, national response when we need one.”

Shortly after his victory in the US presidential election in November, Trump threatened to impose 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico.

On his Truth Social website, Trump warned that if Canada and Mexico fail to curb irregular migration and drug trafficking across their borders into the United States, the measures would take effect “on January 20th as one of my many first executive orders.” stop.

The Republican leader's warning has sparked growing concern among Canadian politicians and business leaders as his inauguration approaches, with provincial premiers calling on Trudeau to do whatever it takes to prevent the tariffs from taking effect.

I'm meeting with the premiers in Ottawa today. None of us want tariffs to undermine a successful partnership between Canada and the United States. But we will be ready with a strong, national response when we need one.

— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) January 15, 2025

One of Trudeau's key allies, former finance minister Chrystia Freeland, resigned in late December over what she said were disagreements over how the Canadian government should respond to the potential tariffs.

“We must take this threat extremely seriously,” Freeland wrote in her resignation letter.

The United States and Canada are among each other's most important trading partners and the two countries exchanged information According to the Canadian government, in 2023, goods and services worth $2.7 billion (C$3.6 billion) will move across the shared border every day.

Since Trump threatened his tariffs, Trudeau – who will step down as prime minister once his Liberal Party elects a new leader in early March – emphasized the need for dialogue to maintain strong relationships between Canada and the United States.

He also previously said the Canadian government would “respond to unfair tariffs in a variety of ways,” without elaborating on what specific actions might be taken.

Canadian broadcaster CBC News reported last week that a document circulating among senior officials in Ottawa listed hundreds of U.S.-made goods on which Canada could impose retaliatory tariffs.

The list includes American steel products, plastics and Florida orange juice, the CBC reported.

At Wednesday's meeting with Trudeau, some premiers, including Ontario's Doug Ford, offered support for the prospect of retaliatory tariffs.

“I am a strong supporter of retaliatory tariffs,” said Ford, a leader of the Conservative Party. “In my opinion, you can’t let someone hit you in the head with a sledgehammer without hitting them back twice as hard.”

Ford came to the roundtable with his own version of Trump's trademark “Make America Great Again” emblem: a blue cap that read “Canada is not for sale.”

“We come into these negotiations from a position of strength and with the greatest possible influence,” Ford said from his seat at Trudeau’s side.

He also had a message for the US: “We are not the enemy. We are your closest ally. We are your closest friend.”

Ontario Premier Doug Ford wears the “Canada is not for sale” hat at a news conference before a meeting with provincial and territorial leaders Jan. 15 in Ottawa, Canada. [Blair Gable/Reuters]

Industry groups in Canada are also preparing for Trump's tariffs and the economic disruption they could trigger.

On Wednesday, Canadian union Unifor released a public letter to the Trudeau government outlining steps the country could take in light of Trump's collective bargaining proposal.

This included the “immediate” introduction of retaliatory tariffs and emergency aid for industries facing layoffs as a result of a trade war.

“Never in modern history has Canada faced such rebuke from its largest trading partner and closest ally,” union President Lana Payne said of Trump’s tariff statements.

“The threat to the livelihoods of Canadian workers – including tens of thousands of Unifor members in trade-vulnerable sectors – has crossed a dangerous line. This cannot be tolerated.”

Since threatening the tariffs, the Trudeau government has engaged in a hectic diplomatic standoff with the new Trump administration.

The prime minister himself traveled to Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida in November, and since then several ministers have also made the trip to defuse economic tensions.

Just this week, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson traveled to Washington, DC, to propose a stronger energy alliance with the US, which imports millions of barrels of Canadian oil every day.

But while Trudeau has sought to combat Trump's economic saber-rattling with a “Team Canada” approach, some Canadian prime ministers have met separately with the U.S. president-elect, raising fears of cracks in the united front.

For example, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith traveled alone to Mar-a-Lago over the weekend.

She posted pictures of her trip on social media and wrote: “On behalf of Albertans, I will continue to engage in constructive dialogue and diplomacy with the new government and elected federal and state officials of both parties.”