Donald Trump has voiced concerns that Canada has been exploiting trade advantages over the United States for years. (Pic Credit: AP)
US president Donald Trump has accused Canada of taking advantage of the United States through trade imbalances over several years, while expressing confidence that the two countries could eventually reach an agreement that benefits the American economy.
Speaking to FOX 2’s Roop Raj ahead of a rally in Michigan, Trump claimed Canada had earned billions of dollars annually at the expense of the US. “Canada has been making $90B/year off us for years and years.
However, he said discussions between the neighbouring countries were moving towards a possible resolution, according to the news agency ANI. I love Canada; I love everything about it – other than some of the leaders,” Trump said. They’ve taken advantage of our country, but we’re getting close to a deal… The US President also stressed that he was seeking a lasting agreement rather than a temporary arrangement, arguing that the final deal should deliver long-term economic benefits for the country. “I want to make the right deal. I’m not a short-term person, I’m a long-term. When the deal is made, it’ll be a great deal for America,” he added.
Earlier this month, Trump said he was in no rush to restart trade negotiations with Canada, accusing Ottawa of treating Washington unfairly. Canada behaves very badly with the United States and I don’t know,” he said. And it will work out eventually, but I don’t know about I’m in no rush,” he said. “You know, Canada does all their business with us, we do very little business with them,” he said.
He also insisted that Canada would have to act honestly for any future agreement to move forward. “I don’t know. However, he did not specify which tariffs he was referring to. “We caught them in the act; they charged us a lot of tariffs that nobody knew about except me. His remarks indicated that an early resumption of talks was not a priority, although he maintained that the dispute could eventually be resolved. Trump reiterated his criticism of the commercial relationship between the two countries, claiming that Canada benefited disproportionately from its economic ties with the United States. He also argued that Canada needed to demonstrate greater transparency and fairness in its dealings with Washington. “And all we ask of one thing in Canada, they have to be honest. They are not honest with the United States; they’ve been ripping us off for years,” Trump added. Despite his criticism of Canadian leaders and trade practices, Trump expressed optimism that a future agreement could resolve the dispute. He did not provide further details about the proposed deal or indicate when negotiations might be concluded. You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.
Asked whether negotiations would resume before the US midterm elections, Trump offered no timeline and questioned Canada’s conduct in its trade relationship with the US. Trump further alleged that Washington had discovered Canadian tariffs that he claimed had previously gone unnoticed by others.