‘Canada doesn’t have a say’: Expert warns Trump’s demands put Ottawa in tough spot

Former Canadian ambassador to China Guy Saint-Jacques discusses Canada’s response to Trump’s tariff call and potential consequences.

U.S. President Donald Trump asked NATO countries – including Canada – to impose steep tariffs on China as a pressure tactic to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.

The president posted the letter, addressed to “ALL NATO NATIONS AND, THE WORLD,” on Truth Social Saturday. He said he’s ready to do “major” sanctions on Russia and called for alliance-wide levies on China between 50-100 per cent. The tariffs would be removed after the war concludes, Trump added.

“China has a strong control, and even grip, over Russia, and these powerful Tariffs will break that grip,” he wrote.

In a statement to CTV News, a spokesperson for the finance minister said the G7 remains united in pressuring Russia over its war in Ukraine.

“Yesterday’s meeting of G7 finance ministers was productive and saw progress on several fronts, including on the more strategic use of Russian assets to support Ukraine’s defence and the need to strengthen sanctions on Russia,” the spokesperson said.

“There is still work to be done, but all our G7 partners agree that we can and must do more to stop Russia’s war machinery. More discussions and steps – that build on yesterday’s progress and exert maximal pressure on Russia – will come in the weeks ahead.”

Canada’s trade war with China

Canada is already in the throes of a trade war with China.

Ottawa imposed a 100 per cent tariff on Chinese electric vehicles last year, with a commitment to review it in 12 months. Canada has also imposed a 25 per cent tax on certain steel and aluminum imports, and another 25 per cent duty on steel imports from all non-U.S. countries that contain steel melted and poured in China.

China has put tariffs on Canadian canola. Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday his officials had a constructive meeting with their Chinese counterparts on canola imports, which face a 75.8 per cent preliminary import tariff.

China is the world’s largest importer of canola.

A survey by Nanos Research released earlier this week found more than six in 10 Canadians support removing the tax on Chinese-made EVs with the hope that China would drop its canola tariffs. Support was strongest among respondents in the Prairies, where the bulk of canola is grown.

“We asked Canadians whether they think trade with China should increase, decrease, or stay the same,” said the firm’s founder, Nik Nanos. He says people have warmed up to the idea of a commercial relationship compared to just a few years ago.

“You can see back in 2020 and 2022, at the heat of the two Michaels, the Huawei stuff, all that kind of kerfuffle; very few Canadians actually wanted to increase trade with China,” he explained, estimating that just one in 20 Canadians wanted to boost trade at the time.

“It’s now jumped to 36 per cent,” he said, adding that Trump’s hostility towards Canada may have contributed to the shift.

‘Canada doesn’t have a say’

However, Trump’s letter puts Canada in a pinch, according to Royal Military College and Queens University professor Christian Leuprecht.

In his read, Trump wants the NATO allies in the European Union to take a harder stance against Russian oil, and Canada’s position as a non-EU member may put it in an awkward spot when pursuing its own interests in China.

“The Ukraine conflict is much more important to European NATO partners than it is to the United States,” Leuprecht told CTV News. “Trump is saying to Europe, ‘you’re going to have to pick a side if you want us on board, and to do your bidding.’”

The EU is negotiating a plan to phase out imports of Russian oil and gas by January 2028, with a ban on short-term contracts kicking in from next year. Reuters reported Friday that U.S. energy secretary Chris Wright said he believed the EU could phase out Russian oil and gas within 12 months by replacing it with American fuel.

Canada in turn finds itself caught in the middle, according to Leuprecht. Trump’s demands on NATO make it more difficult for Ottawa to strike its own economic path with China.

“This is the problem when we underinvest in instruments of statecraft and foreign policy,“ Leuprecht said.

“What Canadians are seeing upfront and personal is the inability of Canada to shape the environment, that Canada doesn’t have a say. Canada simply has to react.”

However, in an interview with CTV Question Period that aired last Sunday, European Parliament president Roberta Metsola suggested there is an emerging European market for Canadian oil and gas as the EU divests from Russian energy.

When host Vassy Kapelos asked her whether there is, in her view, a customer in Europe for Canada’s conventional energy exports, Metsola said: “Yes.”

“We have pivoted over the last years,” she said, referring to the EU’s move away from Russian oil.

“We need to find alternative sources.”

With files from CTV News’ Colton Praill, Reuters and The Canadian Press