Senior Canadian officials met with top advisers to Donald Trump on Friday to discuss border security and the potential impact of tariffs the president-elect has threatened to impose when he takes office next month.
Canadian Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc and Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly traveled to Mar-a-Lago to meet with Howard Lutnick and Doug Burgum, Trump’s picks to head the Commerce and Interior departments, respectively.
A Canadian Finance Ministry spokesperson said the meeting was “positive” and “productive,” and served as a follow-up to Trump and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s dinner last month after Trump threatened to impose a 25% tariff. to Canadian products.
“Both ministers outlined Canada’s Border Plan measures and reiterated their shared commitment to strengthening border security and combating the harm caused by fentanyl to save Canadian and American lives,” spokesperson Jean-Sébastien Comeau said in a statement.
The meeting did not appear to change things on the tariff front, although Lutnick and Burgum agreed to “transmit information” to Trump, according to Comeau.
Trump’s transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday evening.
Entering the meeting, an independent spokesperson for the Ministry of Finance said: “Ministers intend to focus on Canada’s efforts to combat fentanyl trafficking and illegal migration and the measures outlined in Canada’s Border Plan, as well as the negative impacts that the imposition of 25% tariffs on Canadian products would have for both Canada and the United States.”
The meeting comes on the heels of Trump’s repeated promises to impose tariffs on Canada and Mexico. Trump has portrayed the tariffs as a response to border security, arguing that Canada and Mexico are contributing to the flow of illegal drugs, such as fentanyl, into the United States.
Data provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows that fentanyl seized at the northern border is a small fraction of the amounts seized in other regions.
Canada and Mexico are two of the United States’ largest trading partners, meaning the tariffs would have far-reaching effects.
Trump has recently mocked Trudeau by referring to him as the “governor” of Canada. In holiday social media posts, Trump repeated the nickname and suggested the United States could annex the country as its 51st state.
