Canadian government ministers said economic threats from US President-elect Donald Trump are “real” and are being taken “seriously.”
On Tuesday, Trump told reporters he would not roll back the tariffs, which he initially linked to demands for beefed-up border security from both Canada and Mexico, saying “millions of people” were flocking to the United States and claiming drugs were arriving at a “record rate.” numbers.”
“We will make up for that by imposing tariffs on Mexico and Canada, big tariffs,” Trump said.
The president-elect was asked if he would use military force “to annex and take possession of Canada,” to which he replied: “No, economic force.”
This followed previous comments about making Canada a US state.
Asked by reporters Wednesday as they headed to a Liberal caucus meeting about Trump’s latest comments, several Canadian government ministers said they believe his economic threats are “real.”
“We take the matter seriously and will respond seriously as well,” International Trade Minister Mary Ng said. “We should be concerned when tariffs and punitive tariffs hurt the Canadian economy. You’ve seen us stand up for Canadian businesses all the time; we’ve never hesitated to do so, (and) we won’t do it this time.”
Ng went on to say that it’s not just Canadian jobs that will be hurt by the tariffs, as Canada is a “major customer” of the United States.
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Canada and the United States are each other’s most important trading partners, with more than $3.6 billion worth of goods and services crossing the border daily. The US trade deficit with Canada – which is different from subsidies – reached US$53.5 billion in 2022, the US Trade Representative’s Office says.
The latest data from the US Census Bureau also showed that in November 2024 alone, Canada accounted for 16.3 per cent of total US exports, followed by Mexico at 15.4 per cent. China was the next closest country, with a 7.3 percent share of total exports.
Despite this, Trump suggested he would impose tariffs of up to 25% on goods coming from Canada and Mexico, without specifying whether any products would not be affected.
In recent weeks, the federal government has not shared details of any potential retaliation, such as its own tariffs, instead reconstituted a parliamentary committee on Canada-US relations and made various announcements on funding to address Trump’s concerns about border security.
Foreign Minister Mélanie Jolie, who has been facing questions about her potential Liberal leadership bid, said the ability to defend Canada’s interests is a key focus for her in the context of the next U.S. administration.
“Not only is this something I’m very concerned about, but we have to be fully prepared because the threat of tariffs is real,” Jolie said. I believe that when President-elect Trump speaks, we have to listen and take him seriously. I don’t take his threats lightly. At the same time, we cannot swallow the bait and I believe we are also very strong as a country.
Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc also weighed in on Wednesday, following a post on X saying he would not enter the Liberal leadership race, saying he will not run because he wants to focus solely on the threat of tariffs.
“I will focus solely on the real economic threat that U.S. tariffs pose to the Canadian economy and to Canadian workers,” LeBlanc told reporters. “It’s a full-time job and I’m lucky to have it.”
Trump has stated several times that the United States is “subsidizing” Canada with $200 billion in trade and spending billions more on continental defense programs such as Canada’s NORAD, which he said “basically has no military.”
He also said the United States doesn’t need the various Canadian products it imports, such as lumber and dairy products.
Trump added that because of the money he claims the United States is spending on Canada, “it should become a country,” a suggestion he has made several times before. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh criticized the idea, saying it would never happen.
—With files from Global News’ Sean Boynton
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