Canadian Premier Warns Trump After Tariff Seesaw: ‘We Will Be Relentless’

Doug Ford, premier of the Canadian province Ontario, has warned President Donald Trump that “we will be relentless” unless Trump “removes the threat of tariffs for good.”

Newsweek reached out for comment to the White House via email on Thursday night.

Why It Matters

During his 2024 presidential campaign, Trump vowed to impose stiff new tariffs on goods coming from foreign countries. He announced earlier this week that he was moving forward with 25 percent tariffs for products from Canada and Mexico and a new 10 percent tariff on Chinese goods, saying the maneuvers were needed to address illegal importation of fentanyl.

But on Thursday, Trump walked back some of the tariffs, signing executive orders to suspend tariffs for Mexico and Canada on products that comply with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) until April 2, while leaving a 10 percent tariff on Canadian energy in place.

What To Know

Shortly after Trump partially backtracked, Ford asserted that the temporary tariff pause on USMCA goods “means nothing” and promised that Ontario would continue retaliating until Trump drops the tariffs entirely in a post to X, formerly Twitter.

“The only thing that’s certain today is more uncertainty,” Ford wrote. “A pause on some tariffs means nothing. Until President Trump removes the threat of tariffs for good, we will be relentless.”

Earlier, in a Fox Business interview that was shared in the X post, Ford also dismissed Trump’s pause, saying that he would be moving forward Monday with a plan to place 25 percent tariffs on Ontario electricity sold to Michigan, New York and Minnesota.

“Isn’t this a shame?” Ford said. “It’s an absolute mess. [Trump’s] created chaos. He ran on a mandate to lower costs, lower inflation, create more jobs. It’s the total opposite. You know, people are going to be losing their jobs in the U.S. and in Canada. And inflation’s happening already … The [stock] market is going downhill quicker than the American bobsled team.”

“I feel terrible [for moving forward with the tariffs],” he continued. “There’s one person to be blamed, and this is President Trump … He wants to declare a war on his closest friends, his closest allies, in the world.”

Ford previously threatened to cut off Ontario energy exports to the U.S. entirely over Trump’s tariffs, while earlier this week he ordered American alcohol products to be removed from Ontario liquor store shelves.

What People Are Saying

Trump, explaining the executive order to pause Canadian tariffs in the Oval Office on Thursday: “It basically makes it more fair for our car manufacturers, during this short-term period before April 2nd—April 2nd is, uh, a little bit different, that will be much more significant. But during this interim period, between now and April 2nd, this makes it much more favorable for our American car manufacturers.”

Ford, insisting that Canada would “win” a trade war with Trump, during a news conference earlier this week: “I will fight like I’ve never fought before … We want to work with our American friends and allies, not against them. We said we’d never start a trade and tariff war with the U.S., but you better believe we’re ready to win one.”

What Happens Next

Due to the expected tariffs, electricity prices may rise as soon as next week in areas of the U.S. that rely on energy from Ontario. American and Canadian consumers may also soon experience rising costs due to tariffs on non-USMCA goods.