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Following Donald Trump’s re-election, there are serious doubts about whether Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be able to repair his relationship with a notoriously vindictive man whom he has denigrated for years. That’s why we were pleased to see Ontario Premier Doug Ford acknowledge that the political calculus has changed.

On Tuesday, Ford noticed that Mexico is being used as a “back door for Chinese automobiles, auto parts and other products into the Canadian and US markets.” If Mexico does not take action, “at least equalizing Canadian and U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports,” Ford argued that we should “prioritize the world’s closest economic partnership by directly negotiating a bilateral free trade agreement between the United States.” and Canada to put American and Canadian workers first.”

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This is similar to the rhetoric espoused by Trump. During the election campaign, Trump criticized China’s use of Mexican auto parts plants as a means to circumvent trade restrictions and gain a foothold in the North American market, and threatened to impose tariffs of up to 200 percent on Mexican vehicles unless the country takes action. to end the practice.

There is no doubt that the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and its successor, the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), have been enormously beneficial to the Canadian economy. Ideally, the highly integrated North American free trade zone will remain in place for years to come.

But if Trump is willing to scrap CUSMA because China uses Mexico as a backdoor to the North American market, Canada must be willing to cooperate and recognize, as Ford said, that preserving our trade relationship with the United States is much more important. important to ensure that Mexico remains in the agreement.

It should be noted that this is exactly what Ford suggested: not that Mexico should be expelled from CUSMA, but that if it does not start taking seriously the threat posed by China, as Trump has demanded, Canada and the United States may have to do so. do it alone.

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In all likelihood, Chinese automakers will take notice and refrain from making further investments in Mexico, at least for the next four years. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s administration will also realize that Chinese investment would not offset the losses the country would suffer if it were no longer part of CUSMA.

The only question is how much pain all parties will have to endure to reach that eventuality. And in this sense, following Ford’s example of speaking Trump’s language and engaging in similar negotiation tactics would seem like a politically savvy move.

Unfortunately, this is not the kind of skillful political maneuvering we can expect from Justin Trudeau. Within days of Trump’s election, liberals reconstituted a missing cabinet committee on relations between the United States and Canada, to give the impression that Ottawa is trying to get ahead of the situation. But he bad blood and significant political differences between the two leaders threaten to derail our relationship with our most important trading partner.

One of those big differences is how they view China. Trump was one of the first world leaders to criticize Beijing for its aggressive trade practices and economic warfare. Trudeau, on the other hand, has spent the last decade warming up to China. Even repeated warnings from our intelligence agencies that communists were actively interfering in our elections have not been enough for him to take the China threat seriously.

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Ford clearly understands that by publicly acknowledging that Beijing is not a benevolent actor and that future trade negotiations may involve difficult decisions, Canada and Mexico would be seen as allies in future negotiations with the Trump administration, rather than adversaries. Ford, of course, can’t do much, since his government has no control over international trade agreements. However, as premier of the province that is home to the vast majority of Canada’s automotive sector, Ford’s voice carries weight.

More importantly, it is showing that at least some Canadian politicians are capable of putting aside any personal differences they may have with Donald Trump to focus on finding mutually beneficial solutions.

The relationship between Canada and the United States may be strained over the next year, but the prospect of a new Conservative government in 2025 and provincial premiers who can find common ground with the new administration offer hope for the future of our bilateral relationship. Trump’s influence may even prove to be the push Canada needs to improve its defense and begin to take seriously the threat posed by adversaries like China.

National Mail

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