Canada PM Justin Trudeau said Thursday he is re-establishing a special cabinet committee on Canada-US relations to address his administration’s concerns about another Donald Trump presidency.
Deputy PM Chrystia Freeland, who is also the country’s finance minister, will chair the committee. “Following the election of President Donald Trump for a second term, the cabinet committee will focus on critical Canada-US issues,” Trudeau’s office said.
Canada is one of the most trade-dependent countries in the world, and 75% of Canada’s exports go to the US. During Trump’s first time, his move to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement, and reports that he was considering a 25% tariff on the auto sector were considered an existential threat in Canada at the time.
Trudeau called Trump Wednesday to congratulate him. Although Trump once called Trudeau “weak” and “dishonest” during his first term, ties between the two nations have remained among the closest in the world. During the recent election campaign, Trump has proposed tariffs of 10% to 20% on foreign goods – and in some speeches has mentioned even higher percentages. Nelson Wiseman, a political science professor at the University of Toronto, said Canada should expect new tariffs and pressure to increase its military budget.
Canada police brace for asylum-seekers from US
Canadian police and migrant aid groups are bracing for an influx of asylum-seekers fleeing Trump’s US. “We knew a few months ago that we had to start prepping a contingency plan because if he comes into power, which now he will in a few months, it could drive illegal migration and irregular migration into (the province of) Quebec and into Canada,” the police said on Thursday.