Canada's outgoing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau dismissed U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's comments about annexing Canada, calling them a distraction from the looming threat of tariffs on crucial Canadian exports.
Trudeau, in Washington, D.C., for the state funeral of former President Jimmy Carter, addressed the remarks during an interview with CNN, firmly rejecting the idea of making Canada the "51st state."
"That's not going to happen. Canadians are incredibly proud of being Canadian. One of the ways we define ourselves most easily is, well, we're not American. There is such a depth of pride that that's not actually an issue," he said.
He suggested that Trump's comments were a strategic move to divert attention from more pressing economic issues.
"What I think is happening here is President Trump, who's a very skillful negotiator, is getting people distracted by that conversation," Trudeau said.
Noting the potential impact of the proposed U.S. tariffs, he claimed that Trump is trying "to take away from the conversation about 25% tariffs on oil, gas, electricity, steel, aluminum, lumber, and concrete, and everything American consumers buy from Canada is suddenly going to get a lot more expensive if he moves forward on these tariffs."
"That's something we need to focus on a little bit more," he added.
Asked about his advice for his potential successor, Trudeau stressed the importance of collaboration.
"Yes, the American president has the capacity to hurt the Canadian economy. There's no question about that. But anything an American president does to hurt the Canadian economy will also hurt American consumers, American workers, and American growth," Trudeau said.
He further called for the two nations to collaborate in addressing global challenges.
"We do better when we work together to take on the world, whether it's China, Russia, or anywhere else. When we work together, we can't be stopped."
Since his election victory in November, Trump has referred to Canada as the "51st state."
The U.S. president-elect previously threatened to impose a 25% tariff on Canadian imports unless Canada takes steps to significantly reduce the flow of drugs and illegal immigrants crossing into the U.S. He similarly threatened Mexico with the tariffs.