Donald Trump wrote on Twitter that "There is no political necessity to keep Canada in the new NAFTA," also noting that the agreement was "one of the worst Trade Deals ever made." According to Trump, the US had "lost thousands of businesses and millions of jobs" due to the agreement.
Earlier this week, the US president said that August 31 was the deadline for concluding the trade talks with Canada. He later said during a speech in North Carolina that Canada had taken advantage of the United States "for many years."
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On Friday, the Toronto Star published leaked off-the-record remarks made by Trump during a recent interview with Bloomberg. According to the newspaper, Trump had stressed that a possible deal with Ottawa would be entirely on US terms.
In March, the US announced tariffs on aluminum and steel imports. Addressing the move, the Canadian foreign minister announced that Ottawa would respond by imposing 10% to 25% trade tariffs on US goods beginning July 1, adding that Canada's actions were developed in close collaboration with Mexico and the European Union.