Inside the unfolding drama of Ottawa’s down-to-the-wire negotiations with the White House.
OTTAWA — President Donald Trump is keeping Canada guessing — again.
With days until another tariff hike threatens to kick in on Canadian goods, negotiations between Canada and the U.S. have stalled after months of phone calls and on-again, off-again talks in Washington.
“We haven’t really had a lot of luck with Canada. I think Canada could be one where they’ll just pay tariffs. It’s not really a negotiation,” Trump told reporters on Friday before flying to Scotland, where he reached a preliminary trade and investment deal with the European Union.
On at least one point, Canadian officials briefed on the conversations agree with Trump: The talks between the U.S. and Canada don’t amount to a real negotiation.
Rather, they describe the meetings between Canadian officials — Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc and Ambassador Kirsten Hillman — and U.S. officials, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, as chaotic and one-sided, with the Americans recycling grievances and offering no clear path forward.
It’s a bad omen for reaching an agreement by Aug. 1, the deadline Carney and Trump have set to ink a new economic and security deal — and avoid a potentially debilitating North American trade war. But in recent days, both leaders have tempered expectations.