U.S. President Donald Trump has posted a letter in which he threatens a 35% tariff on Canada, recites a list of grievances, and demands abject surrender to his whims, once again showing that he is not negotiating in good faith.
You can read the letter below:
Notice how Trump leaves no possibility of future certainty by noting that the tariffs could change at any time. This renders any future trade deal with the Trump Administration subject to being violated at any moment.
And look at the tone of the letter. Trump demands the right to slam the Canadian economy with tariffs, and then demands the right to punish Canada for ‘daring’ to respond. There is no real negotiation taking place here; rather, we have threats and demands for submission.
Further, Trump again repeats his false view of trade deficits. The U.S. has a trade deficit with Canada because it voluntarily chooses to purchase Canadian energy at a significant discount. Of course, Trump fails to mention that the U.S. has a significant services trade surplus with Canada, as U.S. tech and entertainment companies dominate large sections of the market here.
The key takeaway here is that there will be no stability in the trading relationship between Canada and the United States while the current U.S. administration is in office. Thus, Canada must seek to increase its domestic resilience and deepen trade ties with partners that live up to their signed agreements.
Spencer Fernando
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