U.S. President Donald Trump warned Canada on Saturday that it would face a sweeping 100 percent tariff on all goods entering the United States if Ottawa follows through on a pending trade agreement with China, escalating tensions between the two longtime allies.
Trump issued the warning in a series of posts on his Truth Social platform, directly targeting Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and framing the potential deal with Beijing as a threat to Canada’s economy and sovereignty.
“China will eat Canada alive, completely devour it, including the destruction of their businesses, social fabric, and general way of life,” Trump wrote. “If Canada makes a deal with China, it will immediately be hit with a 100% Tariff against all Canadian goods and products coming into the U.S.A.”
The remarks mark a sharp shift in tone from earlier this month, when Trump publicly voiced support for Canada pursuing trade discussions with China. On January 16, Trump told reporters at the White House, “It’s a good thing for him to sign a trade deal. If you can get a deal with China, you should do that.”
Canadian officials pushed back Saturday, emphasizing that Ottawa is not seeking a comprehensive free trade agreement with Beijing. Dominic LeBlanc, the minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade, said in a post on X that the discussions with China focused on resolving specific tariff issues rather than pursuing a broad trade pact.
“There is no pursuit of a free trade deal with China. What was achieved was resolution on several important tariff issues,” LeBlanc said.
Carney, who recently traveled to China in an effort to stabilize strained bilateral relations, addressed Canadians in a video message on Saturday but did not directly respond to Trump’s tariff threat. Instead, he urged consumers to prioritize domestic goods amid growing economic uncertainty.
“With our economy under threat from abroad, Canadians have made a choice to focus on what we can control,” Carney said. “We can’t control what other nations do, we can be our own best customer.”
China’s embassy in Canada said Beijing was prepared to work with Ottawa to implement agreements reached during recent high-level talks, according to a statement provided to Reuters.
