TORONTO: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is unwilling to lift Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on the United States if President Donald Trump leaves any US tariffs on Canada, a senior government official told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
The official confirmed Trudeau’s stance on the condition of anonymity because the person was not authorised to speak publicly on the matter. The official said Trump and Trudeau spoke by phone around midday.
Other Canadian officials publicly echoed Trudeau’s position.
“We’re not interested in meeting in the middle and having some reduced tariff. Canada wants the tariffs removed,” Canadian Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford, the leader of Canada’s most populous province, agreed.
“Zero tariffs or nothing. This attack was not started by our country. This was started by President Trump. He decided to declare an economic war against our country and our province, and we’re going to hold strong,” Ford said.
Trump launched a new trade war on Tuesday by imposing tariffs against Washington’s three biggest trading partners, drawing immediate retaliation from Mexico, Canada and China and sending financial markets into a tailspin. Trump put 25% taxes, or tariffs, on Mexican and Canadian imports, though he limited the levy to 10% on Canadian energy.
A day after the new tariffs took effect, Trump said he would grant a one-month exemption for US automakers. The announcement came after Trump spoke on Wednesday with leaders of Ford, General Motors and Stellantis, the parent company of Chrysler and Jeep.