WASHINGTON — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau clapped back Tuesday at Donald Trump’s escalating claims that Canada would be better off if it became the 51st state, and has called for an in-person meeting with premiers in Ottawa next week to address this country’s relationship with the United States.
Trudeau and the premiers have met virtually twice since November to negotiate a response to Trump’s threat to slap Canada and Mexico with 25 per cent import tariffs the day he takes office. That threat is now imminent, with inauguration day less than two weeks away and Trump insisting Tuesday in a news conference that he will follow through with the tariffs.
The Prime Minister’s Office said late Tuesday Trudeau and premiers will meet in person Wednesday in Ottawa, days before that would happen.
Trump on Tuesday also repeated his insistence that Canada should join the U.S. While he suggested he would not rule out the use of military force to seize control of the Panama Canal and Greenland, saying they were vital to American security, he did not go that far with Canada. Instead he said he would rely on “economic force” to merge the two countries.
“You get rid of that artificially drawn line and you take a look at what that looks like, and it would also be much better for national security,” Trump said, referring to the border between Canada and the U.S.
“And don’t forget, we basically protect Canada.”
Trudeau, who has until now not directly commented on Trump’s repeated and escalating comments about annexing Canada, appeared to have had enough.
“There isn’t a snowball’s chance in hell that Canada would become part of the United States,” Trudeau said in a statement posted to social media.
“Workers and communities in both our countries benefit from being each other’s biggest trading and security partners.”
Trump first quipped about Canada becoming the 51st state in November, when the prime minister and Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc dined with the president-elect at Mar-a-Lago in Florida to discuss his tariff threats.
LeBlanc has repeatedly dismissed the idea as “a joke” but the government is not laughing now.
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly posted on X that his comments “show a complete lack of understanding of what makes Canada a strong country.”
The Liberal Party posted a map of North America on X labelling the United States and Canada as “Not the United States,” with the caption: “For anyone who may be confused.”
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh told Trump to “cut the crap.”
“Your attacks will hurt jobs on both sides of the border,” Singh posted on X. “You come for Canadians’ jobs, Americans will pay a price.”
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre did not mention Trump by name but said “Canada will never be the 51st state. Period.” In a post on X, Poilievre said Canada is an independent country and the United States’ best friend.
In a wide-ranging news conference at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, the president-elect said he will impose “substantial” tariffs on Canada and Mexico when he returns to the White House in less than two weeks.
Trump said previously he’ll slap 25 per cent duties on imports from America’s closest neighbours unless they stop the flow of illegal drugs and migrants across the border.
Trudeau and LeBlanc made a quick trip to Florida late last year to discuss the threat. A few weeks later, LeBlanc announced a series of measures to beef up border security with a $1.3-billion package. Trump has indicated he still intends to proceed with his tariff plan.
Trump mused about that meeting with Trudeau during Tuesday’s news conference and claimed repeatedly that Canada is subsidized by the U.S. He said the U.S. doesn’t need Canadian imports like milk, lumber and automobiles.
The president-elect also criticized Canada’s level of military funding and said he told hockey legend Wayne Gretzky to run for prime minister.
Matthew Lebo, a specialist in U.S. politics at Western University in London, Ont., said he doesn’t think Trump will infringe on Canada’s sovereignty by somehow forcing the two countries to merge. But the president-elect’s comments show an unwillingness to understand the bilateral relationship, he added.
“Canada should be incredibly nervous that our economic health is in the hands of somebody who doesn’t understand how things work,” he said.
Canada is in a particularly difficult diplomatic situation after Trudeau announced Monday that he will resign his post as soon as a new Liberal leader is chosen, Lebo said.
The date for a Liberal leadership race hasn’t been set. Trudeau also prorogued Parliament until March 24 and a federal election will take place later this year.
Earlier Tuesday, Conservative House leader Andrew Scheer said Trudeau had been “weak” in dealing with subsequent U.S. administrations. Singh challenged anyone running for prime minister to commit to retaliatory tariffs if Trump acts on his promises.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford has warned he will retaliate if Trump follows through, suggesting the province could cut energy exports to the U.S. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has said her province would not impose retaliatory tariffs on oil and gas.
In a statement late Tuesday afternoon, Smith did not directly address Trump’s latest threatening comments but reiterated that Canada buys more products and services from the U.S. than any other country.
“Canada is a strong, independent nation with the ninth largest economy in the world, and our southern neighbour benefits from this economic strength,” she said.
British Columbia Premier David Eby said Tuesday that the burden of confronting the tariff threat has now fallen to the premiers. He said he and his counterparts from across Canada will travel to Washington in an effort to convince the president-elect to back away from the tariff plan.
“It makes no sense to punish both Americans and Canadians to address that issue,” he said. “We can do it together.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 7, 2025.
— With files from David Baxter and Kyle Duggan in Ottawa, Brenna Owen in Vancouver and The Associated Press
