Trudeau promises Canada will ‘not back down’ from trade war as Trump hits Canada with tariffs

WASHINGTON — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada will “not back down” from its trade war with the United States, as U.S. President Donald Trump followed through on his threat to impose punishing tariffs on Canadian imports.

“Today, the United States launched a trade war against Canada, their closest partner and ally, their closest friend,” Trudeau told reporters on Parliament Hill on Tuesday. “At the same time, they’re talking about working positively with Russia, appeasing Vladimir Putin, a lying, murderous dictator. Make that make sense.”

“Canadians are reasonable and we are polite, but we will not back down from a fight, not when our country and the wellbeing of everyone in it is at stake,” he added.

Trump has imposed 25 per cent across-the-board on all imports from Canada and Mexico, and a 10 per cent tariff on Canadian energy, after his 30-day reprieve on the measure expired.

Canada’s retaliatory tariff plan includes two phases, said to total $30 billion in U.S. goods in the immediate term. A further round of tariffs on a wider list of American products, valued at $125 billion, is expected to come into effect 21 days later, following a public comment period.

Trudeau first announced the plan last month, and restated Monday that it still stands.

According to Canada’s finance department, Canada’s retaliatory plan will see tariffs of 25 per cent on a slate of U.S. products, including food and booze, to toilet paper and motorcycles. It’ll also target clothing and footwear, accessories and undergarments, cosmetics, luggage, home wares, furniture and appliances, tobacco, lumber, paper and more.

As part Canada’s early efforts to stave off Trump’s tariff threats, Trudeau laid out a $1.3-billion border plan — which includes appointing a fentanyl czar and deploying additional personnel, drones, surveillance equipment and helicopters — along with other promises.

That plan, recommitted in an 11th-hour deal with Trump last month, helped secure the 30-day tariff reprieve, according to the prime minister.

The president has insisted several times since November that that tariffs are aimed at stopping the flow of illegal migrants and drugs over the borders.

In an interview with CNBC on Tuesday, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick called them an “opioid-related tactic.” In an interview with CNN on Monday, he said: “The border was wide open. We needed to close it, and we want our trading partners to close it.”

Lutnick said while Canada and Mexico have “done a nice job on the border” in recent weeks, the progress hasn’t been enough to significantly reduce American overdose deaths from fentanyl.

Trump acknowledges progress, pushing for more

Trump claims “drugs are still pouring” into the U.S. from Canada, but data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) show fentanyl-related interceptions have decreased.

Last month, CBP told CTV News that illegal encounters between ports of entry at the Canada-U.S. border decreased by more than 80 per cent between June to November last year due to expanded enforcement efforts.

Fentanyl seizures at the border have also dropped by 97 per cent in January 2025 compared to December 2024, according to CBP.

On Wednesday, the RCMP also reported more than 46 kg of fentanyl, and 15,765 of fentanyl pills and other synthetic opioids, were seized between Dec. 9, 2024, and Jan. 18, 2025, as part of a “national sprint aimed at disrupting illegal fentanyl production and distribution in Canada.”

Prior to these latest efforts, Canadian officials highlighted that less than one per cent of all seized fentanyl imports into the U.S. comes from Canada.

Despite acknowledging this statistic, Trump said last Thursday that Canada “should be apprehending more.”

Premiers weigh in

Canada’s premiers, who have all been engaged in a diplomatic push south of the border in recent weeks to dissuade American lawmakers from following through on the tariffs, are also weighing in on Tuesday.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford promised to hit back hard, in an interview with NBC’s Meet the Press on Monday.

Ford — who is also the chair of the Council of the Federation of Canada’s premiers — is threatening to cut off exports of Ontario nickel, scrap provincial government contracts with U.S. companies, and cut off electricity to New York, Michigan, and Minnesota.

The Liquor Control Board of Ontario has also begun pulling American alcohol from store shelves.

N.S. Premier Tim Houston is also pledging his province will hit back.

“We will immediately limit access to provincial procurement for American businesses,” Houston wrote in a lengthy statement posted to social media. “They can no longer bid on provincial business. We are also actively seeking options to cancel existing contracts and reject outright bids until President Trump removes his unlawful tariffs.”

Houston added his province plans to double the cost of tolls for the Cobequid Pass highway for American commercial vehicles, pull American alcohol from the shelves, and will dip into a contingency fund to help Nova Scotians weather the economic uncertainty.

Trump has promised additional rounds of tariffs, including 25 per cent on steel and aluminum as of March 12, and reciprocal tariffs starting early next month.

With files from CTV News’ Rachel Aiello, Stephanie Ha and Brennan MacDonald