【By Observer Net, Ruan Jiaqi】

According to China Central Television, on the evening of July 31 local time, the White House announced that President Trump had signed an executive order on that day, increasing the tariff rate on Canadian goods imported to the United States from 25% to 35% starting August 1. Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau responded by expressing disappointment with the U.S. decision.

The U.S. announcement claimed that because Canada failed to cooperate with the United States in controlling the flow of fentanyl and other illicit drugs into the United States, and instead took retaliatory measures against the United States, the U.S. considered it necessary to impose additional tariffs on Canadian goods.

It is known that the current tariff retaliation measures implemented by Canada were mainly formulated before the previous Prime Minister Trudeau resigned and stepped down in March this year. These include imposing retaliatory tariffs on hundreds of billions of U.S. imports, encouraging citizens to buy domestic products, and reducing travel and consumption in the United States.

On August 1, Brian Clow, who had been responsible for U.S. affairs in Trudeau's office for many years, said in a phone interview, "It's regrettable that, like China, Canada is one of the few countries that still resist this president, while many other countries have chosen to compromise."

He mentioned that Trump has reached agreements with countries that have not implemented retaliatory tariffs, saying, "Therefore, I am not sure whether continuing to retaliate is a wise move."

After winning the April election, Trudeau also promised to resolutely oppose Trump's tariff policies. Last month, he also stated that his goal was to reach an agreement with the United States to cancel the U.S. tariffs on Canada and restore the "United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement" (USMCA) signed during Trump's first term.

However, as Trump's attitude became increasingly hardline, Trudeau's original optimism about reaching an agreement has weakened. He hinted last week that Canada might not accept any agreement containing tariffs to meet Trump's deadline.

"If there is an agreement that is in the best interest of Canadians, we will agree to sign it," said Trudeau. "We are not determined to reach an agreement at all costs."

On Monday, Trudeau also added that he doubted whether the recent EU-US and Japan-US agreements could serve as a model for Canada, as Canada's situation differs from that of America's other trading partners.

On May 6 local time, Trudeau visited the United States and "clashed" with Trump.

On July 31 local time, after Trudeau announced that he would conditionally recognize the State of Palestine, Trump immediately issued a threat on social media, stating that Trudeau's decision would make it harder for Canada and the United States to reach a trade agreement.

Although Trump insisted that Canada's position on Palestine would not affect the tariff agreement, Canada must "pay a fair tariff rate". However, the White House subsequently stated that Trump had increased the tariff rate on Canadian goods to 35%.

It is reported that the Canadian trade negotiation team is still in Washington, and Ottawa has kept the details of the negotiations confidential.

Canadian Cabinet Minister Dominic LeBlanc, responsible for the negotiations, told a Canadian media outlet, "Before yesterday's workday ended, the agreement was still far away... The U.S. still has its sights set on areas crucial to the Canadian economy."

He emphasized that Canada has clearly stated it will only accept suitable agreements, "In the coming weeks, we will continue to negotiate with the U.S. to strive for an agreement that puts us in a more favorable position."

LeBlanc also revealed to journalists that he will call the U.S. Commerce Secretary Rutenberg next week and hopes that both sides can meet in August.

"The door to negotiations is not closed, it remains open, and dialogue continues," he said.

According to the executive order released by the White House, Canadian goods that currently meet the conditions for preferential tariffs under the USMCA are temporarily not affected by the latest tariff measures.

This means that most of Canada's export products can still enter the United States without tariffs, so some voices in Canada believe that the government should not rush to reach an agreement.

David Patterson, representative of Ontario Province in Washington D.C., said that Canadians should not overreact to the progress of the negotiations, "The sun will rise tomorrow morning, and we will continue forward. We strongly support the Prime Minister's approach. When the time is right, the agreement will be reached."

Meanwhile, Goldy Hyder, Chairman of the Canadian Business Council, expressed concern that Canada is in a difficult position in the negotiations and urged Ottawa to adopt a new negotiation strategy. Earlier, he had called on the government to immediately cancel the digital services tax to exchange for the U.S. to remove the tariffs.

"Someone told me that Canada is playing international chess, but the opponent isn't even following the rules," he said in an interview with Canadian media. "We must seriously think: 'What have we been doing? What do we need to do?' We must act faster, because our national economy is already very vulnerable."

This article is an exclusive article of Observer Net. Unauthorized reproduction is prohibited.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7533801070196261422/

Statement: The article represents the views of the author. Please express your opinion by clicking the 【Like/Dislike】 buttons below.