US-Canada row escalates after tense G7

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Europe

The diplomatic and trade row between the US and Canada deepened on Sunday as top White House advisers lashed out at Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau a day after US President Trump called him “very dishonest and weak.”

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow accused Trudeau of betraying Trump with “polarizing” statements on trade policy that risked making the US leader look weak ahead of a historic summit with DPRK leader Kim Jong Un.

The spat drew in Germany and France, who sharply criticized Trump’s decision to abruptly withdraw his support for a Group of Seven communique hammered out at a Canadian summit on Saturday, accusing him of destroying trust and acting inconsistently.

“Canada does not conduct its diplomacy through ad hominem attacks ... and we refrain particularly from ad hominem attacks when it comes to a close ally,” Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland told reporters on Sunday.

Freeland reiterated Canada will retaliate against US tariffs in a measured and reciprocal way, adding Canada will always be willing to talk.

US President Donald Trump (R) is talking with German Chancellor Angela Merkel (C) and surrounded by other G7 leaders during a meeting of the G7 Summit in La Malbaie, Quebec, June 9, 2018. /VCG Photo

Trump arrived in Singapore on Sunday for the summit that could lay the groundwork for ending a nuclear stand-off between the old foes.

“(Trudeau) really kind of stabbed us in the back,” Kudlow, the director of the National Economic Council who had accompanied Trump to Canada, said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

Trade adviser Peter Navarro told “Fox News Sunday” that “there is a special place in hell for any leader that engages in bad faith diplomacy” with Trump.

Trudeau, in Quebec City for bilateral meetings with non-G7 leaders after the summit, did not comment as he arrived.

Trudeau got direct personal support from some European leaders.

British Prime Minister Theresa May “is fully supportive” of Trudeau and his leadership, a senior UK government source said, while European Council President Donald Tusk tweeted: “There is a special place in heaven for @JustinTrudeau.”

Freeland, asked about support from allies, said: “The position of our European allies, including Japan, is the same as ours. We coordinated very closely with the European Union, with Mexico, on our list of retaliatory measures and actions.”

Europe will implement counter-measures against US tariffs on steel and aluminum just like Canada, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said, voicing regret about Trump’s decision to withdraw support for the communique.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau addresses a press conference at the conclusion of the G7 summit in La Malbaie, Quebec, June 9, 2018. /VCG Photo

Trudeau’s office said he had not said anything in his closing G7 news conference he has not said to Trump before.

The majority of Canadian exports go to the US, making Canada uniquely vulnerable to a US trade war.

Canadian officials, including Trudeau, have fanned across America as part of a months-long charm offensive to appeal to pro-trade Republicans at every level. But even those vested in Canadian trade are not expected to come to Trudeau’s defense as long as the US economy is roaring.

“I think the pushback by Congress is going to come up incredibly short,” Chris Barron, a pro-Trump Republican strategist, said of Republican efforts to rein in Trump.

Source(s): Reuters