‘Difficult country to trade': Trump calls off trade talks with Canada, slams digital services tax
US President
came down hard on Canada over its decision to impose a Digital Services Tax (DST) on American technology companies, calling it a "direct and blatant attack" on the United States.
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In a post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump announced the immediate suspension of all trade discussions with Canada on Friday.
Citing what he called excessive tariffs on American agricultural exports, Trump claimed that Canada has long been a "very difficult country to trade with."
"For years, they have imposed tariffs on dairy products that have cost our farmers up to 400%," Trump wrote.
He further accused Canada of following the European Union, which has also implemented similar digital taxation policies that are currently under discussion with the US government.
'They are obviously copying the European Union, which has done the same thing,' he said.
In a sharply worded statement, Trump declared that the US would soon impose tariffs on Canadian goods. 'We will let Canada know the tariff that they will be paying to do business with the United States of America within the next seven day period,' the post warned.
Canada's digital services tax, first proposed years ago, is aimed at ensuring that large multinational tech firms, many of which are US based, pay taxes on revenues generated from Canadian users.
The policy has drawn criticism from US lawmakers and trade officials who argue it disproportionately targets American companies like Google, Amazon, and Meta.
While the Trump administration has been in talks with Ottawa over trade, this statement marks a clear break, signalling a return to his combative 'America first' stance.
There was no immediate response from Canadian officials, but trade experts warn that the sudden halt in dialogue could escalate into a wider economic dispute, potentially affecting billions in cross-border commerce.
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