WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Saturday he had an “excellent conversation” with Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago club following the president-elect’s threat to impose significant tariffs on two of America’s leading trading partners sounded the alarm in Ottawa and Mexico City.
When Trudeau returned to Canada from Florida, it was unclear whether the conversation had allayed Trump’s concerns.
A person familiar with the details of the leaders’ hastily arranged meeting Friday evening said it was a “positive, extended dinner that lasted three hours.” The official, who was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity, said topics included trade, border security, fentanyl, defense, Ukraine, NATO, China, the Middle East and pipelines as well as the Group of Seven meeting in Canada next year.
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The Republican president-elect has threatened to impose tariffs on products from Canada and Mexico if the countries do not stop what he called the flow of drugs and migrants across their borders. He said he would impose a 25% tax on all products entering the U.S. from Canada and Mexico when he takes office in January. This is one of his first executive orders.
As he left his West Palm Beach hotel, Trudeau paused to answer a reporter’s question about the dinner meeting, saying it was “an excellent conversation.” Trump’s transition team did not respond to questions about what the leaders had discussed.
Trump once called Trudeau “weak” and “dishonest” during his first term as president, but it was the prime minister who was the first G7 leader to visit Trump since the Nov. 5 election.
“Tariffs are a critical issue for Canada and a bold step was appropriate. Maybe it was a risk, but a risk worth taking,” said Daniel Béland, a professor of political science at McGill University in Montreal.
Attendees at the dinner included Howard Lutnick, Trump’s pick of Secretary of Commerce; North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum is set to lead the Department of the Interior; and Mike Waltz, Trump’s pick to be his national security adviser. Trudeau was accompanied by Canadian Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc, whose responsibilities include border security, and Katie Telford, Trudeau’s chief of staff.
Trudeau had said earlier Friday that he would resolve the tariff issue by talking to Trump. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said a day earlier after a conversation with Trump that she is confident that a tariff war with the United States will be averted.
Trudeau said Trump was elected because he promised to lower the cost of groceries, but now he’s talking about adding 25% to the cost of a variety of products, including potatoes from Prince Edward Island in Atlantic Canada.
“It is important to understand that when Donald Trump makes such statements, he intends to carry them out. There is no doubt about it,” Trudeau said before leaving for Florida.
“Our responsibility is to point out that not only would he harm Canadians who work so well with the United States, but he would actually raise prices for American citizens and harm American industry and business,” he added. he added.
According to Nelson Wiseman, professor emeritus at the University of Toronto, Trump “does not need to be convinced that new tariffs on Canadian products would not be in the interests of the US.” He knows that, but can’t say it because it would take away from what he has said in public. His goal is to project the image that he is getting action when he talks.
Those tariffs could essentially blow up the North American trade deal that Trump’s team negotiated during his first term. Trudeau noted that they were able to successfully renegotiate the deal, which he calls a “win-win” for both countries.
Trump made the tariff threat Monday while referring to an influx of migrants entering the country illegally, even as the numbers at the Canadian border pale in comparison to those at the U.S.-Mexico border.
Trump also talked about fentanyl from Mexico and Canada, even though seizures from the Canadian border are small compared to the Mexican border.
Canadian officials say it is unfair to lump Canada in with Mexico, but say they are willing to make new investments in border security.
When Trump imposed higher tariffs during his first term, other countries responded with their own retaliatory tariffs. For example, Canada announced billions in new tariffs against the US in 2018 in response to new taxes on Canadian steel and aluminum.
Canada is the main export destination for 36 US states. Nearly $3.6 billion Canadian (US$2.7 billion) worth of goods and services cross the border every day.
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Gillies reported from Toronto.
