Prime Minister Mark Carney suggested Wednesday that Canada's reputation as a reliable supplier could take a hit if it started using energy exports as leverage in trade talks with the United States.
As he was making an announcement alongside Alberta Premier Danielle Smith in Red Deer, Carney was asked about the prospect of restricting energy exports to the United States to exert pressure in trade negotiations.
Carney said that of all the commodities Canada has in abundance, trust might be the most valuable.
"Being a reliable supplier is important," he said, adding that suppliers of critical commodities like energy should think long and hard before cutting off customers.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford said last week that Canada could "dismantle" the United States if Ottawa and the provinces agreed to use energy exports as leverage against Washington's latest threatened tariffs.
Canada's chief trade negotiator Janice Charette and Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc were in Washington Wednesday. The Trump administration's threatened new round of 50 per cent tariffs on a range of Canadian goods is set to take effect on Aug. 19.
Unlike most of Trump’s other tariffs, these tariffs would have no exemptions for goods compliant under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement on trade, better known as CUSMA.
United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer has said the measure is a response to provincial bans on U.S. liquor, Canada's supply managed dairy system and quotas on certain U.S. vehicles.
Carney insisted Wednesday that Canada has options as it pursues a renewed continental trade pact.
"We have many things we can do. The first and foremost is to work towards an agreement. That's what we're going to do," he said. "But there's other things we could do if we needed to address the situation."
CUSMA was negotiated during the first Trump administration to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement. The negotiations were sometimes contentious but all three countries ultimately hailed CUSMA as a success.
Carney said last week that he spoke with Trump and they agreed to intensify trade talks.
The Trump administration said earlier in July that it would not be renewing the trade agreement. That decision triggers rolling annual reviews for up to 10 years, at which point CUSMA would expire unless all parties agreed to an extension.
Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh
