Photo credit: ABC News
US President Donald Trump on Saturday warned Canada that if it concludes a trade deal with China, he will impose a 1000 per cent tariff on all goods coming over the border.
France 24 reports that relations between both countries have been rocky since Trump returned to the White House a year ago, with spats over trade and Canadian Prime Minister Mike Carney drying a “rupture” in the US-led global order.
During a visit to Beijing last week, Carney hailed a “new strategic partnership” with China that resulted in a “preliminary but landmark trade agreement” to reduce tariffs – bit Trump warned of serious consequences should that deal be realized.
If Carney “thinks he is going to make Canada a ‘Drop Off Port’ for China to send goods and products into the United States, he is sorely mistaken,” Trump wrote on social media.
The two leaders have sharpened their rhetorical knives in recent days , beginning with Carney’s speech on Tuesday at the World Environment Forum in Davos, where he earned a standing ovation for his frank assessment of a “rupture” in the US-led global order.
His comments were widely viewed as a reference to Trump’s disruptive influence in international affairs, although he did not mention the US leader by name.
Trump fired back a day later at Carney in his own speech, and then withdrew an invitation for the Canadian prime minister to join the “Board of Peace” – his self-styled body for resolving global conflict.
Although it was initially designed to oversee the situation in post-war Gaza, it now appears to have a far wider scope, sparking concerns that Trump wants to create a rival to the United Nations.
“Canada lives because of the United States. Remember that, Mark, the next time you make your comments,” Trump said.
Carney shot back on Thursday: “Canada doesn’t live because of the United States. Canada thrives because we are Canadian.” However, he acknowledged the “remarkable partnership between the two nations.
