U.S. President Donald Trump put Canada and Iran side by side when discussing potential deals on Saturday, apparently equating the United States’ relationship with one of its closest allies to that of an enemy nation.
Asked by a reporter whether he was considering withdrawing from the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) on trade entirely, Trump said that “Canada wants to make a deal very badly, just like Iran wants to make a deal very badly.”
Trump made his comments during a meeting in Dublin with Ireland’s taoiseach Micheál Martin, the country’s head of government.
“I just don’t think they’re ready,” Trump added, saying that both countries could get a deal “at the right time” with the United States. “But Canada wants to make a deal. I hope Canada appreciates being in the same sentence with Iran.”
Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc said Friday that no formal trade talks were scheduled, although he said conversations between Canadian and American officials have not stopped. His office declined to comment on Trump’s Saturday remarks.
The president started by saying that the United States has a “good” relationship with Canada and followed this with his oft-repeated assertion that his country “has been ripped off for 50 years by Canada.”
The North American neighbours have been embroiled in an escalating trade war since Prime Minister Mark Carney summoned negotiators home on Aug. 21, accusing the American side of making last-minute demands that would undermine Canada’s sovereignty. The two countries appeared to be on the verge of a deal earlier that week, to settle some outstanding trade irritants and prevent the United States from imposing a new round of punishing tariffs on Canada.
Trump then imposed 50 per cent tariffs on nearly $28 billion in Canadian goods. Canada’s retaliatory tariffs, ranging from 15 to 50 per cent on hundreds of products, took effect on Tuesday; later that same day, Trump signed new orders to ban imports of some Canadian products, including most alcohol. He also vowed to include steel, aluminum and automotive products — already facing steep import duties — in tariffs from which they had previously been excluded.
Both sides have blamed each other for the impasse. In a statement issued Tuesday, U.S. Trade Rep. Jamieson Greer said the escalation was a “natural consequence” of Canada discriminating against American exports and choosing “senseless retaliation” over an almost final trade deal. In a video posted that day, Prime Minister Carney accused the Trump administration of trying to make Canadian industries dependent on the U.S.
In parallel, the United States has been at war with Iran since it launched joint strikes with Israel on the Islamic Republic on Feb. 28, starting a months-long conflict that spread to neighbouring states and rocked the global economy.
Iran continues to attack some ships trying to transit the Strait of Hormuz, which has become an important source of leverage for Tehran in the war. The U.S. has been introducing new measures to increase the economic pain on Iran after negotiations collapsed and no end to the intermittent fighting appears in sight.
With files from the Canadian Press and the Associated Press
