Canadian ministers to talk tariffs with Trump aides in Florida

The Canadian ministers of concern and overseas affairs are acceptable to clasp talks successful the US authorities of Florida with aides to Donald Trump, arsenic the incoming United States president’s threat of hitting Canada with steep tariffs looms large.

Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly and Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc travelled to Palm Beach, Florida, for discussions connected Friday astir the effects tariffs would person connected some countries.

Late past month, Trump threatened to slap 25-percent tariffs connected each Canadian goods if the US’s bluish neighbour did not bash much to stem the travel of amerciable drugs and irregular migration implicit its border.

LeBlanc’s bureau said successful a connection connected Thursday that the Canadian ministers would item “the antagonistic impacts that the imposition of 25 percent tariffs connected Canadian goods would person connected some Canada and the United States”.

Friday’s gathering volition besides absorption connected Canada’s efforts to combat fentanyl trafficking and amerciable migration, the bureau added.

It was not instantly wide which Trump advisers the ministers would beryllium gathering with, but LeBlanc said past week that helium planned to conscionable aft Christmas with Tom Homan, Trump’s incoming “border czar”.

Politico besides reported connected Friday that the Canadian ministers were expected to talk with Howard Lutnick, a billionaire businessman who has been tapped by Trump to beryllium the adjacent US caput of commerce.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government has stressed the value of beardown US-Canada ties successful the look of Trump’s tariff threat, with Trudeau himself travelling to Mar-a-Lago successful precocious November for in-person talks with the US president-elect.

But Trudeau, whose popularity has dropped significantly implicit the past fewer years, is nether unit from Conservative politicians astatine the national and provincial levels to resoluteness immoderate problems earlier Trump takes bureau adjacent month.

The premier curate besides faces calls to resign arsenic the person of his Liberal Party successful beforehand of national elections adjacent year.

Those calls grew louder this period erstwhile Trudeau’s longtime deputy, Chrystia Freeland, resigned from her furniture posts implicit what she said was a disagreement implicit however champion to grip the incoming US president.

“The incoming medication successful the United States is pursuing a argumentation of assertive economical nationalism, including a menace of 25 per cent tariffs. We request to instrumentality that menace highly seriously,” Freeland, who had served arsenic concern and lawman premier minister, wrote successful her resignation letter.

“That means keeping our fiscal pulverization adust today, truthful we person the reserves we whitethorn request for a coming tariff war,” she said.

Trudeau has been nether unit to measurement down arsenic person of his Liberal Party [File: Carlos Osorio/Reuters]

Experts accidental that US tariffs combined with reciprocal measures by Canada would harm the economies of some countries.

The US and Canada exchanged $2.7bn ($3.6bn Canadian) successful goods and services regular crossed their shared borderline past year, according to Canadian authorities figures.

In caller weeks, Trudeau’s authorities has announced caller investments to bolster information astatine the US-Canada border, including the usage of “helicopters, drones, and mobile surveillance towers” by Canadian national constabulary on the expansive frontier.

But it remains unclear if the caller measures volition beryllium capable to stave disconnected Trump’s tariff threat.

Homan, the incoming US “border czar”, told Canadian broadcaster CTV News successful an interrogation earlier this period that Canadian migration laws are “too lax”.

“Of course, that’s up to Canada to alteration those rules,” Homan said, adding that helium was “grateful” that Canadian ministers are “coming to the array to speech astir borderline information due to the fact that the bluish borderline is simply a immense nationalist information risk”.

Human rights advocates person urged Canada not to demonise migrants and asylum seekers successful an effort to appease the incoming US administration, which has promised to prosecute a hardline anti-immigrant argumentation erstwhile Trump takes bureau adjacent month.

Meanwhile, arsenic uncertainty continues to swirl astir his tariffs threat, Trump has repeatedly mocked Trudeau and Canada, referring to the premier curate arsenic the “governor” of a state that helium says should beryllium the 51st US state.

On Wednesday, the US president-elect said helium had urged Canadian hockey fable Wayne Gretzky to tally to beryllium the country’s adjacent leader.

“I said, ‘Wayne, wherefore don’t you tally for Prime Minister of Canada, soon to beryllium known arsenic the Governor of Canada – You would triumph easily, you wouldn’t adjacent person to campaign,'” Trump wrote connected his Truth Social platform.

“He had nary interest, but I deliberation the radical of Canada should commencement a DRAFT WAYNE GRETZKY Movement.”

Source

:

Al Jazeera and quality agencies