'Terminated': Trump ends all trade talks with Canada, cites 'egregious behaviour'

DONALD Trump on Thursday (local time) said that he was ceasing "all trade negotiations" with Canada.

He accused it of misquoting former president Ronald Reagan in an advertising campaign opposing tariffs, which the US President described as “egregious behaviour”, intended to influence US court rulings.

Trump said, “The Ronald Reagan Foundation has just announced that Canada has fraudulently used an advertisement, which is FAKE, featuring Ronald Reagan speaking negatively about Tariffs.”

“The ad was for $75,000. They only did this to interfere with the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court, and other courts. TARIFFS ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO THE NATIONAL SECURITY, AND ECONOMY, OF THE U.S.A. Based on their egregious behavior, ALL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS WITH CANADA ARE HEREBY TERMINATED," he added.

Trump’s social media post followed Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s statement that he plans to double Canada’s exports to markets outside the US in response to the threat from Trump’s tariffs.

“The jobs of workers in our industries most affected by US tariffs — autos, steel, lumber — are under threat. Our businesses are holding back investments, restrained by the pall of uncertainty that is hanging over all of us. The US has fundamentally changed its approach to trade, raising its tariffs to levels last seen during the Great Depression," Carney said, as per a report by AP.

“We have to take care of ourselves because we can't rely on one foreign partner. We are re-engaging with the global giants India and China. “I will always be straight about the challenges we have to face and the choices we must make. To be clear, we won't transform our economy easily or in a few months — it will take some sacrifices and some time," he added.

Earlier on Thursday, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute stated on X that the ad which the government of Ontario created “misrepresents the 'Presidential Radio Address to the Nation on Free and Fair Trade' dated April 25, 1987.”

The foundation also noted that Ontario did not obtain its permission “to use and edit the remarks.” The foundation indicated it is “reviewing legal options in this matter” and encouraged the public to view the unedited video of Reagan's address.

Doug Ford, the premier of Ontario took to X and shared a link to the ad and the message, “It’s official: Ontario’s new advertising campaign in the U.S. has launched. Using every tool we have, we’ll never stop making the case against American tariffs on Canada. The way to prosperity is by working together.”

Carney met with Trump earlier this month in an effort to ease trade tensions as the two countries, along with Mexico, prepare for a review of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, a trade deal Trump negotiated during his first term but has since become critical of.

More than three-quarters of Canadian exports are destined for the US, with nearly $3.6 billion Canadian (US$2.7 billion) worth of goods and services crossing the border every day.