Rubio heads to Canada as Trump wages trade war
JEDDAH, SAUDI ARABIA: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio travelled to Canada on Wednesday, marking the highest-level visit by President Donald Trump’s administration, which has been criticised by Canada as waging a trade war described as an existential challenge.
Rubio is attending the Group of Seven (G7) foreign ministers’ talks in Charlevoix, Quebec, where he plans to urge the industrial democracies—united in their support for Ukraine following Russia’s 2022 invasion—to back Trump’s strategy of pressing both Moscow and Kyiv to make concessions.
Rubio’s journey took an unusual route, departing early Wednesday from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where he had met senior Ukrainian officials the previous day to discuss an initial ceasefire plan.
In previous US administrations, visits to Canada by presidents and senior officials were typically among the first and focused on reaffirming the friendly neighbours’ longstanding ties. However, since returning to power, Trump has taken a combative approach towards Canada, mocking it as a less populous nation that should become the “51st state” of the United States and imposing tariffs.
Rubio’s arrival coincides with the imposition of a 25 per cent tariff on all steel and aluminium imports from Canada and other US trading partners. On Tuesday, Trump threatened to double the tariff on Canada but relented after Ontario, the most populous province, agreed to withdraw a surcharge on electricity to three US states.
Rubio acknowledged that trade tensions would likely be a topic of discussion during his meeting with Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly but emphasised the shared interests between the two nations, particularly within the G7. “Our obligation is to try, to the extent possible, to not allow the things we work on together to be impacted negatively by the things we disagree on right now,” Rubio said en route to Saudi Arabia.
Canada’s outgoing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau warned on Sunday that the country faces “an existential challenge” from its southern neighbour. Mark Carney, who is set to succeed Trudeau, expressed concerns, stating, “The Americans want our resources, our water, our land, our country.”
The New York Times recently reported that Trudeau’s alarm intensified after Trump expressed a desire to revise a 1908 treaty that defines the US-Canada border. Rubio said he was unaware if Trump had raised the border treaty but did not expect the issue to surface at the G7 talks.
By RSS/AFP
