The response was not long in coming. President Donald Trump, who decided this week to cut trade relations with Canada due to an advertisement against US customs duties, announced on Saturday the addition of an additional 10% to already affected Canadian imports.
“Their ad had to be removed IMMEDIATELY, but they let it air yesterday (Friday) night during the World Series, knowing it was a FRAUD,” said the US president, on his Truth Social platform.
He was referring to an advertising campaign produced by the Canadian province of Ontario, which aired on Friday night during the highly watched first game of the North American baseball championship finals.
“I heard they were going to withdraw the ad. I didn’t know they were going to spread it a little more. They could have withdrawn it this afternoon,” he told reporters on Friday afternoon before embarking on a tour of Asia, denouncing a “turn” by Canada.
This ad used excerpts from a speech by Ronald Reagan, in which the former US president warned of some of the consequences that high tariffs on foreign imports could have on the US economy.
Broadcast on several American television networks, it provoked the ire of Donald Trump, who on Thursday night denounced “scandalous behavior” and announced the immediate end of trade negotiations with Ottawa.
This breakup was already a hard blow for Canada at a time when it seemed possible to conclude a trade agreement between the two countries, covering steel, aluminum and energy, according to the Canadian newspaper Globe and Mail.
Before the announcement appeared, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Donald Trump were scheduled to meet at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit later this month in South Korea.
But, after this broadcast, the American billionaire stated that he had no intention of speaking with Mark Carney or meeting with him.
Canada is the United States’ second largest trading partner and a major supplier of steel and aluminum to American companies.
Before Saturday’s announcement, some Canadian imports were subject to maximum customs duties of 25% (10% for energy and potash), but all goods included under the United States-Canada-Mexico free trade agreement (CUSMA) are exempt.
Source: BFM TV
