Minister Joly Says Trump Holds the Cards on Tariffs After Rubio Meeting

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Canadian officials are making a diplomatic push in Washington to avoid U.S. tariffs but ultimately they remain in the dark about U.S. President Donald Trumpโ€™s intentions, Foreign Affairs Minister Mรฉlanie Joly said after meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Joly held a first meeting with Rubio in his new capacity on Jan. 29. While she said her arguments to U.S. officials explaining whatโ€™s at stake for the two countries if tariffs are imposed are โ€œdefinitely resonating,โ€ Joly told reporters after the meeting she has no insight on what the U.S. administration plans to do.

โ€œAm I in the head space of President Trump? No, of course not,โ€ she said, calling Trump the โ€œultimate decision-maker.โ€

โ€œAnd so in that sense, Iโ€™m just doing the job of making sure that people around him really are able to sign on our different arguments,โ€ she said.

Joly said she spoke with Rubio about Canadaโ€™s border plan, on the impacts tariffs would have on the two countries, and on Ottawaโ€™s intention to retaliate if push comes to shove. The two also spoke about geopolitical issues including Ukraine, the Middle, East, the Arctic, and China.

Rubioโ€™s office issued a readout of the meeting saying the two top diplomats spoke on how to collaborate on issues such as border and energy security.

The readout also says Rubio โ€œcommended Canada for confronting the CCPโ€™s [Chinese Communist Party] coercive and unfair economic practices,โ€ without elaborating further. Ottawa imposed in October a 100 percent tariff on Chinese-made electric vehicles and a 25 percent tariff on Chinese steel and aluminum.

Tariffs Intended for โ€˜Actionโ€™

While no new information on potential U.S. tariffs came out of the Rubio meeting, Trumpโ€™s nominee for commerce secretary Howard Lutnick provided some insight around the tariff strategy during his Senate confirmation hearing on Jan. 29.

Lutnick said the threat to impose 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico was intended to โ€œcreate actionโ€ on strengthening the border and that tariffs can be avoided if the response is adequate. He also spoke of a second wave of tariffs that could come in the spring after the U.S. government completes a review of trade imbalances.

Byย Noรฉ Chartier

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