Canadian Prime Minister: "No Intention to Sign FTA with China"... Soothing Trump

Trump Warns of Tariffs if Canada Signs Deal with China
Intense Disputes Expected Ahead of July USMCA Talks

On the 16th, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Garneau held a summit meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping during his visit to China. Photo by AP Yonhap News

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has stated that he has no intention of signing a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with China. This remark is seen as a response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s criticism regarding Canada’s reduction of tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles. The U.S. government has strongly objected, arguing that Chinese products could avoid tariffs by entering through Canada.

According to Canadian broadcaster CBC on January 25 (local time), Prime Minister Carney said at a press conference that day, "The measures we have taken with China are intended to address issues that have arisen in recent years," and emphasized, "Under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), Canada cannot sign a free trade agreement with another country without prior notification to the United States and Mexico."

Earlier, on January 16, Prime Minister Carney visited China and held a summit meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Afterward, the two sides agreed to lower the punitive additional tariff on Chinese electric vehicles from 100% to 6.1%. In return, China agreed to reduce the combined tariff on Canadian canola seeds from approximately 84% to around 15%.

President Trump has strongly objected to the tariff agreement between Canada and China. On January 25, through his social media platform Truth Social, he sharply criticized, "Canada is systematically self-destructing," and added, "A trade deal with China will be disastrous for them." He also warned, "If Canada signs an agreement with China, a 100% tariff will be immediately imposed on all Canadian goods entering the United States."

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also harshly criticized the Canada-China tariff agreement in an interview with ABC, saying, "The U.S. and Canadian markets are highly integrated, with products sometimes crossing the border six times during manufacturing," and added, "We cannot allow Canada to become a gateway for cheap Chinese products flooding into the United States."

Some observers suggest that the Trump administration may use the Canada-China tariff agreement to gain an advantage in the upcoming negotiations to extend the USMCA in July. Bloomberg News reported, "The USMCA agreement is approaching its sixth anniversary on July 1, and extension negotiations are ahead," adding, "Intense disputes between the U.S. and Canada are expected in the upcoming talks."