Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Ottawa does not intend to move toward a free trade agreement with China following tariff threats from U.S. President Donald Trump. “We have no intention of doing that with China or with any other non-market economy,” Carney said on Sunday, according to the Associated Press. He added that recent engagement with Beijing had been focused solely on resolving issues that have arisen over the past couple of years.
A day earlier, Trump warned that if Canada were to conclude a trade agreement with China, the United States would impose 100-percent tariffs on its northern neighbor. “If Governor Carney thinks he can turn Canada into a ‘transshipment hub’ for Chinese goods into the United States, he is deeply mistaken,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. “China will eat Canada alive, completely absorbing it, including the destruction of businesses, the social fabric, and the way of life people are accustomed to,” he added.
Earlier this month, Canada and China reached preliminary trade understandings that would reduce tariffs on electric vehicles and canola. As AP reports, Ottawa was prepared to allow up to 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles into its market at a tariff rate of 6.1 percent, while Beijing was set to cut tariffs on Canadian canola seeds in March.
During his second term, Trump has repeatedly resorted to tariff threats, fueling tensions with U.S. allies, including Canada and the European Union. In recent weeks, relations with Ottawa have also been strained by the president’s statements about his intention to acquire Greenland, which is a territory of Denmark.
Last week, Trump told Carney that Canada “exists thanks to the United States,” after the Canadian prime minister spoke out in defense of Greenland amid the president’s rhetoric about a possible acquisition of the Arctic island.