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At an economic summit on Friday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that he believes the US president is serious in his intention to annex Canada, a claim he linked to Trump’s interest in securing access to Canada’s critical mineral resources, according to a source cited by The Globe and Mail.
Trudeau made these comments before an audience of more than 150 business leaders, trade specialists, and union representatives in Toronto, who convened to explore ways to strengthen economic growth and attract new investments amid rising concerns over US protectionist policies.
“I suggest that not only does the Trump Administration know how many critical minerals we have but that may be even why they keep talking about absorbing us and making us the 51st state,” the prime minister told the gathering as reported by The Star.
In recent months, Trump has repeatedly proposed that Canada could evade tariffs by forming a political union with the United States. He has also mockingly referred to Trudeau as the “governor of the 51st state.”
Trump on Monday said he would delay the imposition of tariffs on Canadian exports by 30 days in return for concessions on border and crime enforcement, in particular cracking down on fentanyl smuggling.
Trudeau said Ottawa’s immediate challenge was to persuade Washington that Canada was doing all it could to combat the flow of fentanyl. Public data shows 0.2% of all the supply of the drug seized in the U.S. comes from the Canadian border.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsIf tariffs were imposed, Canada would respond in kind, but its goal would always be to have the measures removed as fast as possible, Trudeau told business and labor leaders at the start of a meeting on how to diversify trade and boost the economy.
“The strategic reflection we have to have right now is … how we get through, and thrive, and grow stronger over the next four years and into what may be a more challenging long-term political situation with the United States?” he said.
With inputs from agencies