Trump Issues Threat to Canada After It Backs Palestinian State
'Preserving a two-state solution means standing with all people who choose peace over violence or terrorism, and honouring their innate desire for the peaceful co-existence of Israeli and Palestinian states as the only roadmap for a secure and prosperous future,' said Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
Canada's decision follows an announcement from France last week that it will recognize Palestinian statehood. On Tuesday, the United Kingdom committed to do the same unless Israel fails to meet certain conditions to improve conditions in Gaza and commit to peace.
Canada's decision, like the U.K.'s, comes with stipulations. Palestine must demilitarize, for example, and 'hold general elections in 2026 in which Hamas can play no part,' said Carney.
Trump lashed out in a Truth Social post, in which he threatened that the decision could hamper a prospective trade deal between the U.S. and Canada, which is to be reached by a Friday deadline lest hefty tariffs go into effect.
'Wow!' Trump wrote. 'Canada has just announced that it is backing statehood for Palestine. That will make it very hard for us to make a Trade Deal with them. Oh' Canada!!!'
The response to Canada, a country Trump seemingly has a penchant for intimidating, had more teeth than those to France's and the U.K.'s announcements (on the former he said, 'That statement doesn't carry weight'; the latter, he said, would reward Hamas).
Trump seemingly hopes to use the impending trade deal deadline to bully Canada into backing down on its pledge to uphold statehood for Palestine (which is, under international law, 'a right, not a reward,' according to the U.N.'s secretary-general).
Carney, for his part, has already noted that the U.S.-Canada trade deal may take some additional time to come to fruition. 'We're seeking the best deal for Canadians,' he said Wednesday. 'We have not yet reached that deal. Negotiations will continue until we do.'
Trump's fluid list of demands, per the National Post, has included Canada shelling out for Trump's 'Golden Dome' defense system and aiding Trump's immigration agenda along the U.S.-Canada border.
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