U.S. President Donald Trump accused Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of leveraging a trade dispute between Canada and the U.S. to maintain his political standing, following a “somewhat friendly” phone conversation on Wednesday.
Trump took to social media to express his confusion after Trudeau failed to specify the date of the upcoming Canadian election, suggesting that it indicated a political strategy to cling to power amid the tariffs situation.
Trudeau, who announced his impending resignation in January, is set to step down following the election of a new Liberal party leader this weekend.
The new leader will automatically become prime minister and will have the authority to call the next federal election, which must occur by October, although analysts predict it could happen earlier. Prime ministers in Canada can call for elections at any time during their five-year mandate.
The relationship between Trudeau and Trump has been contentious since Trump’s return to the White House in January, with disputes over trade policies and fentanyl trafficking.
After Trump imposed 25% tariffs on Canadian imports into the U.S., Trudeau expressed his frustration, stating that while he perceives Trump as intelligent, the tariffs are “a very dumb thing to do.”
He further accused Trump of attempting to destabilize the Canadian economy for potential annexation.
Trump has previously made remarks about the possibility of Canada becoming the 51st U.S. state, reflecting his ongoing adversarial stance toward Trudeau, whom he derogatorily refers to as “Governor Trudeau.”
