‘Makes no sense’: Trudeau sounds alarm bell as U.S. inches toward tariff war
WASHINGTON — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau describes it as baffling that the United States might be on the verge of using national security as an excuse to impose heavy tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum.
He reacted Friday after the U.S. indicated that it was leaning toward using a rarely invoked provision in American law that allows a president to unilaterally declare tariffs to counter threats to national security.
As the No. 1 supplier of both steel and aluminum to its southern neighbour, Canada is lobbying hard for an exemption. Canada has hinted at retaliatory action, as have the European Union and Mexico in what could morph into a global trade war.
”It just makes no sense to highlight that Canada and Canadian steel or aluminum might be a security threat to the United States,” Trudeau said during an event in Barrie, Ont.