Prime Minister Justin Trudeau congratulated Republican candidate Donald Trump for winning a second term as U.S. president, emphasizing close ties between the countries and previous trade negotiations which culminated in agreements.
Trump was declared as projected winner of the presidential election early on Nov. 6, having secured enough electoral votes including those of key states like Pennsylvania. He is also leading in other key battlegrounds like Michigan and Arizona, and leads the popular vote by around 5 million.
Trudeau called the relationship between Canada and the United States the world’s “most successful partnership,” saying the countries are united by a “shared history, common values, and steadfast ties between our peoples.”
The prime minister also noted the importance of trade between the countries and their interconnectedness economically. The amount of trade across the borders increased to $1.3 trillion in 2023.
Trump came into the White House in 2016 saying the United States had been taken advantage of by bad trade deals. He pushed for the renegotiation of NAFTA, which led to a new agreement between Canada, the United States, and Mexico.
“We look forward to working with President-elect Trump and his administration, including on issues such as trade, investment, and continental peace and security,” Trudeau said.
Trudeau had a rocky relationship with Trump, but his government has pointed to the successful NAFTA renegotiations as a sign it can manage the relationship well.
Trump will accede to the White House in January with a stated preference for imposing tariffs to shore up domestic manufacturing.
This year, Ottawa has been sending delegations to meet with different U.S. political and business leaders to deepen the relationship outside Washington.
Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne said on Nov. 5 that the goal is to convince the United States that Canada is an indispensable strategic partner with regards to continental security and supply chain resilience.
“We’ve moved from the good neighbour to the north to the strategic partner that they need in the 21st century,” said Champagne.
Trump has been critical of Canada for not meeting the NATO defence spending target of two percent of the nation’s GDP. The Biden administration similarly has pushed member nations to meet the target.
Rocky Relationship
Liberal cabinet ministers had indicated ahead of the election that they find it more difficult to work with a Trump administration. Joly said in August that should Trump win the presidency, her government was preparing for “what could be a very difficult situation.”Trudeau also said that if Trump won again it would bring “a certain amount of unpredictability,” and that it “won’t be easy” to work with him, but said that his government would be ready for whoever becomes president.
In his testimony at the Foreign Interference Commission in October, Trudeau said the 2016 election of Trump was among the elements bringing in a “lift of right-wing populism” that he said clashed with a “responsible, progressive rule of law democracy that believes in facts and evidence as the basis for policy decisions.”
Trump has clashed with Trudeau in the past. In 2018, after a G7 meeting hosted by Canada in Quebec, Trudeau said at a press conference that he wouldn’t hesitate to take retaliatory measures in response to U.S. tariffs. Trump reacted by saying that Trudeau “acted so meek and mild” during the meeting, and that he had made the remarks after Trump left.
A year later while at a NATO summit in London, England, after Trudeau was caught on a hot mic appearing to mock Trump in front of other world leaders for having a lengthy press conference, Trump called him “two-faced.”
Trudeau issued a statement following the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol Hill riots, saying they were “incited” by Trump.
Following the first assassination attempt on Trump in July, Trudeau was quick to call him to wish him well and condemn the attack.
