Trump accuses Canada of high tariffs on farmers

U.S. President Donald Trump accused Canada on Sunday of imposing substantial tariffs on American farmers, intensifying a trade conflict between the two nations. This statement came just one day after bilateral trade negotiations collapsed and the U.S. enacted new 50% levies on Canadian products.

"Canada wants the benefits of being a state, without being one!!! Also, for many years they have imposed enormous tariffs on our magnificent farmers. It's over!!!" Trump posted on his Truth Social platform early Sunday. This marks Trump's first public reaction since the U.S. imposed new measures on approximately $20 billion worth of Canadian goods.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney responded that Ottawa would match the new U.S. tariffs "dollar for dollar" starting September 8. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer blamed Canada for the talks' failure, stating that Canadian negotiators refused to finalize an agreement on terms that, according to the U.S., had been previously settled.

Carney described the conditions added by Washington in the "final hours" before the deadline as "unacceptable" and "a miscalculation." He asserted that the U.S. measures were designed to harm and divide Canadians. Canada's retaliatory tariffs will target sectors such as steel, dairy, appliances, agricultural machinery, paper, and electronics.

Greer warned that "there are no new talks scheduled with the Canadians," characterizing the new tariffs as "countermeasures" against what he called "a year of retaliation" by Ottawa for trade policies enacted by Trump. He claimed the U.S. had offered favorable terms to Canada regarding steel, automobiles, and lumber, but these were rejected. Trump has justified the tariffs as a response to "continuous discrimination" and "unequal treatment" of U.S. trade by Canada, further straining relations between the neighboring countries.