Canada will wait until next week to strike back against the latest U.S. threat of tariffs and nothing is off the table regarding possible countermeasures, Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Thursday.
Carney, warning Canadians that tough times lay ahead, also lamented what he said was the end of a long, mutually beneficial economic and security relationship with the United States.
“We will fight the U.S. tariffs with retaliatory trade actions of our own that will have maximum impact in the United States and minimum impacts here in Canada,” he told a press conference.
A trade war would be extremely damaging for Canada, which sends 75% of its exports to the United States. Carney said he would speak to provincial premiers and business leaders on Friday to discuss a coordinated response to the auto sector tariffs that U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday.
“It doesn’t make sense when there’s a series of U.S. initiatives that are going to come in relatively rapid succession, to respond to each of them. We’re going to know a lot more in a week, and we will respond then,” he said.
“Nothing is off the table to defend our workers and our country,” said Carney. One option for Canada is to impose excise duties on exports of oil, potash and other commodities. Carney broke off from campaigning ahead of an April 28 general election to make the announcement.
He is calling on voters to give his Liberal Party a strong mandate to deal with Trump. Recent polls indicate he will win a comprehensive victory.
“When President Trump threatens us again, we will fight back… with everything we have to get the best deal for Canada,” said Carney, reiterating calls for Canada to build up its own auto sector to reduce reliance on the United States and to diversify its trade.
“It is clear that the United States is no longer a reliable partner. It is possible that with comprehensive negotiations, we will be able to restore some trust, but there will be no turning back,” he said.
Carney said he would speak to Trump in the coming days and stress the need for cooperation and respect for Canada’s sovereignty. Trump often speaks about annexing Canada. Trump said on Thursday that larger tariffs could be placed on the European Union and Canada if they both work together “to do economic harm to the USA.”
Asked for a response, Carney said: “I take note of the President’s comment. I don’t take direction from it.”
(Reporting by David Ljunggren and Promit Mukherjee in Ottawa Editing by Caroline Stauffer and Matthew Lewis)