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Canadian Beat: The latest on tariff talks amid Trump-Putin meeting

FILE- A flag of the United States flies next to a flag of Canada before a baseball game between the Oakland Athletics and the Toronto Blue Jays in Oakland, Calif., Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2023.
Jeff Chiu
/
AP
FILE- A flag of the United States flies next to a flag of Canada before a baseball game between the Oakland Athletics and the Toronto Blue Jays in Oakland, Calif., Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2023.

President Donald Trump may have pushed trade talks with Canada to the back of his agenda, while he prepares for a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin and the prospects of peace in Ukraine. But the commerce department has decided to more than double countervailing duties on Canadian softwood lumber imports.

It’s a move that some business groups in Canada said will harm communities on both sides of the border. So far, the response to Trump’s new tariffs that took effect on August 1 has been muted. However, some provincial premiers want that to change.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford is again warning that Donald Trump is coming for Canada, especially at a time when talks on a new Canada-US-Mexico Agreement are close. That agreement expires early next year. Trump could move to reopen talks on the deal as early as November. Ford says Prime Minister Mark Carney is doing his best, and stands behind him, but Trump only respects strength.

“He’s not waiting until 2026. At any given time, President Trump, not that he even follows the rules, could even pull the carpet out from underneath us tomorrow with one signature,” Ford said. So, let’s be prepared. I think it will be coming in November, in my opinion.”

Meanwhile, Carney said the lines of communication with Washington remain open, and a face-to-face meeting with the president will come when he says it makes sense. But that’s not good enough for opposition Conservative leader, Pierre Poilievre, who is critical of Carney’s approach.

“He is bending over backwards for the president and so far, has gotten nothing in return,” Poilievre said.

Some cracks may be appearing in that united front that provincial premiers had presented in the face of the August 1st renewed tariffs. Premier Ford has called on Ottawa to hit back and hit back hard.

“I still stand by what I say dollar for dollar, tariff for tariff,” Ford said. “They understand strength, not weakness.”

But Carney said he might remove some counter tariffs if it's in the best interests of the Canadian economy. British Columbia’s jobs minister, Ravi Kahlon, prefers a more muted approach.

“We do agree that dealing in strength is important. But that strength comes not by yelling at the US government, but from strengthening our economy,” Kahlon said. “I’m not confident that we’ll have a deal, and even if we do, I’m not confident that he won’t wake up the next morning and have a tweet put out that has new sanctions put in place or new tariffs put in place.”

But Ford seems adamant that his approach is the right one, even though he’s become a bit more cautious.

“I'm praying that everything's going to go fine,” Ford said. “But if it doesn't, I’m going to ask the people, do you trust President Trump? I don’t.”

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Carney said he’s focused on building up Canada as the global trade war escalates.

“I’m going to focus on how we can help transform our softwood lumber industry to compete in this tough new environment,” Carney said.

He pledged to spend about $1.2 billion in loan guarantees and grants for the lumber industry. Carney’s government has also been scrambling to salvage its relationship with Mexico. It fell apart last year after Canadian officials hinted, they’d be better off negotiating a trade deal with Washington alone.

BTPM's comprehensive news coverage extends into Southern Ontario, and Dan Karpenchuk is the station’s voice from the north. The award-winning reporter covers binational issues, including economic trends, the environment, tourism, and transportation.

Karpenchuk’s long career in public broadcasting began in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. He currently works in the Toronto region.

He provides listeners with insights on Great Lakes issues, the arts, health trends and other topics that are important to our audience. His reports help listeners to better understand how residents on both sides of the border are impacted by issues and events.
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