Canada Considers Retaliatory Tariffs Against Trump-Imposed Tariff Bombardment

Canada is considering retaliatory tariffs on U.S. products in response to the tariff bomb announced by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump.

On the 28th (local time), the Associated Press (AP) reported, citing a senior Canadian official, that the Canadian government is preparing for the U.S. tariff bomb and has begun reviewing which products to target if retaliatory tariffs are imposed. However, it added that no decisions have been made yet regarding this matter.

Previously, in 2018, when the first Trump administration announced additional tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum, Canada also imposed retaliatory tariffs on U.S. products. At that time, the retaliatory tariffs targeted items such as yogurt and whiskey, which were specialty products from the hometowns of the U.S. federal Senate and House leaders.

President-elect Trump announced that he would impose a 25% tariff on Canada and Mexico immediately upon taking office, demanding solutions to the influx of drugs and illegal immigrants crossing the borders of the two countries into the United States.

▲On the 13th (local time), Trump and Trudeau are holding a press conference after the summit (Photo by EPA Yonhap News)

In response, Canada is also planning to take measures to address border issues. Canadian officials told AP that although it is unfair to lump Canada together with Mexico, which has a much higher influx of drugs and immigrants, Canada is prepared to make additional investments to strengthen its border security.

According to AP, the number of arrests made by U.S. Border Patrol at the U.S.-Canada border from October last year to September this year, an 11-month period, was 23,721, which is 42% of the 56,530 arrests made at the Mexico border in just October alone.

After President-elect Trump’s tariff announcement, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau held an emergency video conference with provincial leaders on the 27th to discuss response measures. Christia Freeland, Canada’s Minister of Finance, reported that during the meeting, Prime Minister Trudeau and the provincial leaders agreed on the importance of collaborating in a united and organized manner to counter the tariff threat from President-elect Trump.

Meanwhile, the Mexican government has stated that it will respond with the same tariffs to the second Trump administration but is also seeking to find common ground through dialogue.

Yonhap News

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.