In response to US President-elect Donald Trump’s warning to use “economic force” to incorporate Canada into the US, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday that there is no chance of merging countries.
Strongly reacting to Trump’s remark on taking Canada as 51 state, Trudeau, who resigned as the prime minister of Canada a day earlier, responded sharply on social media. “There isn’t a snowball’s chance in hell that Canada would become part of the United States,” he said in a post.
Trump asserted that US help to Canada has kept them in a firm position. He added that he loves the people of Canada, but the United States can no longer financially support Canada.
Reacting to this, Trudeau said that workers and communities in both the countries benefit from being each other’s biggest trading and security partner. It’s not just about the US having the upper hand.
The Canadian foreign minister echoed Prime Minister Trudeau’s statement, stating that the nation will “never back down” from Donald Trump’s threats. Trump had been against US aid now spent on Canada and has threatened to slap up to 25 per cent tariff on Canadian goods unless the northern American country took substantial steps to increase security on the shared border and reduce drugs and illegal immigrants crossing into the US.
The Trudeau government responded by vowing to enact strict border security measures between the United States and Canada, but also stated that it would consider levying counter-tariffs if Mr. Trump followed through with his threats.
There are apparently trillions of dollars in trade between the US and Canada. In 2023, goods and services worth around C$3.6 billion ($2.5 billion) were transported across the border every day, according to figures from the Canadian government.
According to experts, Canada’s economy could suffer greatly if Donald Trump fulfills his threat after assuming office on January 20.
