Canada’s Foreign Minister, Mélanie Joly, plans to maintain contact with allies in the European Union and the United Kingdom to discuss a potential reaction to possible US tariffs, according to a report by the Globe and Mail. Joly also intends to discuss the issue with Mexican authorities.
At the center of her talks with British and EU colleagues, Joly said, will be the question of how to respond to the US administration’s trade policy under President Donald Trump. She noted that in many EU capitals and in the UK, “there is currently a discussion underway about how to deal with retaliatory measures and what reactions are possible to tariffs.”
In her cooperation with the EU and the UK on the issue, Joly emphasized the need for a highly pragmatic approach. “President Trump has spoken about imposing tariffs on the whole world” she said.
Before his inauguration, Trump had urged the EU to increase its imports of oil and gas from the US, stating, “Otherwise, there will be tariffs without end” in a post on his Truth Social network.
Trump has blamed Canada and Mexico for a large number of people coming into the US, as well as the flow of the painkiller fentanyl, which has exacerbated the opioid crisis in the US since several years ago. As a result, he is considering imposing tariffs of 25 percent, effective from February 1. Ottawa, meanwhile, is trying to dissuade Trump from this course of action, according to the Globe and Mail.
Joly is scheduled to travel to Washington this week to meet with the new US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio and present Ottawa’s arguments against the threatened tariffs.