Trudeau says Canada as 51st state is a ‘non-starter,’ vows tariff response

'Canada will respond as appropriate in a calibrated but extremely strong way, regardless of what the U.S. moves forward with,' Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that President Donald Trump’s repeated remarks about Canada becoming the 51st U.S. state is a “non-starter” as he vowed to respond to incoming tariffs.

Speaking to reporters in Brussels on Wednesday, Trudeau said Canada does not want to be in a trade dispute with the U.S., but if Trump follows through on his threats, “we will be equally unequivocal in our response.”

“Canada will respond as appropriate in a calibrated but extremely strong way, regardless of what the U.S. moves forward with,” Trudeau said.

Trudeau is visiting Brussels to strengthen Canada’s relations with its European allies as tariff tensions with the United States continue.

On Monday, Trump said he would impose 25 per cent tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports coming to the United States, including from Canada, on March 12.

The White House confirmed to Global News the 25 per cent metal tariffs would stack on top of the broad-based 25 per cent tariffs on all Canadian goods, which Trump paused for 30 days.

That means the effective tariff for Canadian steel and aluminum will add up to 50 per cent.

In addition, Trump on Monday also threatened a tariff of between 50 and 100 per cent on Canadian vehicles.