The United States has withdrawn its objections to Canadian cultural policies and measures supporting the French language, a move Canada says could create an opportunity to restart stalled trade negotiations.
Canada’s chief trade negotiator, Dominic LeBlanc, welcomed the US decision, saying Washington had dropped its positions on content discoverability and labelling. He added that measures designed to protect the French language and Canadian culture would not be targeted through future US trade actions.
LeBlanc said Canada hoped the US would provide further clarification on other disputed issues, potentially allowing both countries to reach a trade agreement that respects Canadian sovereignty.
The two countries had reportedly been close to an agreement that could have prevented new 50% US tariffs on around C$27 billion in Canadian goods. However, Canada rejected several last-minute US demands, prompting Prime Minister Mark Carney to halt the negotiations.
The US subsequently imposed tariffs on around 700 Canadian products, while Canada announced plans for matching tariffs on US imports starting September 8.
Although LeBlanc suggested that negotiations could resume, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said there were currently no active communication channels between the two countries.
Canada has also indicated that its list of retaliatory tariffs could change depending on feedback from domestic businesses. Finance Canada said it had removed seafood and fish products from the proposed counter-tariff list while maintaining its broader dollar-for-dollar response to US tariffs.
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