Trump calls Canada's trade policies unfair, repeats talk of it becoming 51st US state
World News | Explore how President Trump criticizes Canada's trade policies, claiming they exploit US military protection, as he signs the Fair and Reciprocal Plan to impose tariffs.
US President Donald Trump on Thursday (Feb 13) took aim at Canada as he intensified his trade war strategy, signing plans for sweeping "reciprocal tariffs".
Trump on Canada
While signing the executive action dubbed the "Fair and Reciprocal Plan," Trump called Canada's trade policies unfair and suggested that the country has been taking advantage of US military protection while keeping its own defence spending low.
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"...Canada has been very bad to us on trade," Trump remarked, as he announced, "But now Canada is going to have to start paying up".
Trump remarked that "Canada has been tough on the military because they have a very low military cost. They think we are going to protect them with our military, which is unfair."
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He then made a provocative statement, once again reiterating his previous proposal, said: "I think Canada is going to be a very serious contender to be our 51st state."
Trump's 'reciprocal tariffs'
The US president's tariffs as per reports could target both allies and rivals. The move economists warn may stoke inflation and disrupt global trade.
Speaking from the Oval Office on Thursday, Trump justified the move by claiming that US allies have been "worse than our enemies" when it comes to trade. He singled out the European Union as being "absolutely brutal" in its dealings with Washington.
The new tariffs will be structured on a country-by-country basis, with US trade officials tailoring duties to match levies imposed on American goods.
A White House official, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, said that Washington would first examine economies with which the United States has the largest deficits or "most egregious trade practices."
He said that the levies would not be sweeping, rather they would be tailored. For this, taxes the US sees as "discriminatory", such as value-added taxes (VATs), would be considered.
"This should be a matter of weeks, in a few months, but not much longer than that," the official added.
(With inputs from agencies)
