Trump ‘comfortable’ with pause in Canada trade talks, Greer says

U.S. President Donald Trump is “comfortable” with where things stand with trade talks with Canada and feels “no urgency” to make a deal, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in an interview.

“President Trump is comfortable with where we are on Canada. Our trade policy is a global policy, it applies to Canada, China, the U.K., Brazil, all kinds of countries. He has his tariffs on steel, aluminum and autos to reshore,” Greer told CNBC.

The U.S. still has “a lot of other trade” with Canada, he said.

“We’re still getting what we need from them in terms of oil, gas, potash,” he added.

There was still a lot of “strong trade” between both countries, with Canada still looking for a trade deal, he said.

“The Canadians, periodically they come and they want to have a deal,” Greer said.

While both sides have been having “good conversations about potential deals,” the U.S. felt “no urgency” to make a trade deal anytime soon, he added.

Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc’s office told Global News, “Canada maintains ongoing communications with our American counterparts.”

Trade talks collapsed between Canada and the United States in August after Ottawa walked away from the negotiating table in response to last-minute terms that Prime Minister Mark Carney says the U.S. demanded, including restrictions on Canada entering into new trade deals with other countries.

Since then, Trump has escalated his economic attacks against Canada, imposing multiple rounds of tariffs as well as import restrictions.

With a file from Global News’ Reggie Cecchini