Trudeau "prepares Canada to retaliate" over Trump tariff threat

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who is about to resign, has warned of a counter-offensive over U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's tariff threat, saying, "We are also ready to take retaliatory measures."

On MSNBC, which aired on the 12th local time, Trudeau said he was not trying to wage a trade war with the new U.S. government, but that he would be forced to retaliate if the U.S. imposes tariffs on Canadian products.

In particular, he stressed, "As we did during Trump's first term, we are ready to respond with tariffs if necessary," adding, "The U.S. and Canada are the No. 1 export partners, and anything that thickens the border between the two countries will damage U.S. citizens and jobs."

Earlier in November last year, Trump said drugs and criminals flowed into the U.S. through the Canadian-Mexico border and would impose a 25% tariff if the problem was not resolved.

As of 2023, Canada's exports to the U.S. amounted to more than 590 billion Canadian dollars and about 605 trillion Korean won, accounting for more than three-quarters of the total exports.

The Canadian government also imposed retaliatory tariffs on U.S. products such as home appliances and bourbon whisky when the U.S. imposed tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum in 2018, during the first Trump administration.

Following Trump's announcement of a tariff bomb, the Canadian government is reportedly considering a list of U.S. products that will be subject to retaliatory tariffs.

According to a CNN report on the 10th, there are dozens of American items that Canada is considering retaliatory tariffs, including steel and furniture, orange juice, whiskey, and feed.

Canada is also said to be considering taxing energy products it exports to the United States.

Trudeau has repeatedly dismissed Trump's claim that Canada could become the 51st U.S. state, calling it a negotiating tactic and an unlikely one.

"I am well aware that he, a capable negotiator, wants to make the other person lose his composure," Trudeau said, stressing that "it will not happen to be the 51st U.S. state."

Trudeau, who has been threatened with no confidence in the opposition coalition's cabinet, said earlier on the 6th that he planned to resign immediately as party leader and prime minister as soon as the ruling Liberal Party decides on his successor.