America’s northern neighbor will never become its 51th state, the outgoing prime minister has said
Canada will never become a part of the United States, outgoing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said, rebuffing US President-elect Donald Trump’s idea of making America’s northern neighbor its 51th state.
Trump has repeatedly suggested that his administration would somehow transform Canada into a part of the US. “You get rid of that artificially drawn line, and you take a look at what that looks like, and it would also be much better for national security,” Trump told reporters during a press conference in his residence in Florida on Tuesday.
Trudeau, who announced earlier this week that he would step down as prime minister and the leader of the ruling Liberal Party, addressed Trump’s comments on Wednesday.
“There isn’t a snowball’s chance in hell that Canada would become part of the United States,” Trudeau wrote on X.
He added, however, that “workers and communities in both our countries benefit from being each other’s biggest trading and security partner.”
Pierre Poilievre, the leader of the opposition Conservative Party, also delivered a strongly worded response to Trump. “Canada will never be the 51st state. Period. We are a great and independent country,” Poilievre wrote on X.
He went on to argue that Canada has been “the best friend to the US,” highlighting mutual trade and investments, as well as Canadian contribution to “helping Americans retaliate against Al-Qaeda’s 9/11 attacks.”
“Our weak and pathetic NDP-Liberal government has failed to make these obvious points,” Poilievre wrote. He promised that, if appointed prime minister, he would “rebuild our military and take back control of the border to secure both Canada and the US.” Poilievre added that he would “take back control of our Arctic to keep Russia and China out.”
Trudeau has been Canada’s prime minister since 2015 and has seen his approval rating plummet in recent months. In a speech on Monday, he said that he no longer feels confident to lead the Liberals in the election expected to take place this year.
Trump reacted to Trudeau’s announcement by claiming on his Truth Social platform that “many people in Canada LOVE being the 51st State.”
“The United States can no longer suffer the massive Trade Deficits and Subsidies that Canada needs to stay afloat. Justin Trudeau knew this, and resigned,” Trump wrote.
During and after his election campaign, Trump threatened to impose tariffs on Canadian goods, arguing that the measure would strengthen the US economy.
