From Allies to Rivals: How Sweet Relationship Between US and Canada Turned Sour, What Are the Issues & What's Next

Washington DC: US and Canada, who are neighbours geographically and have had a successful economic and military relationship for the past many decades, have now become rivals. 

From the tariff war to the annexation threats, read about the problems between the two countries and what the future may hold for them…

From Allies to Rivals: How Sweet Relationship Between US-Canada Turned Sour

Canada and the United States are the only two countries in the world, that share the longest border of almost nine thousand kilometres and the countries have considered themselves as the closest allies, for decades together. The two countries have shared a key economic, military and security relationship with each other, fostering cooperation and integration through partnerships, bilateral agreements and cross-border projects related to lakes, highways, bridges and communications.

Also Read: Canada PM Carney Calls Trump’s Auto Tariffs a ‘Direct Attack’ on Country

Apart from a few tiffs and disagreements over trade agreements and environmental concerns amid other things, a major rift between the two nations came in 2018, after the-then Canada PM Justin Trudeau raised his voice against tariffs by US President Donald Trump in his first term, on aluminium and steel. On Trudeau's remark that Canadians wouldn't be “pushed around”, Trump accused him of making “false statements”, labelling him as “meek” and “dishonest”.

The relations between the two countries, which had taken a turn for the worse, improved again a few years later, when the Joe Biden assumed duties as the US President in 2021. Trudeau and Biden held their first bilateral meeting virtually and discussed several issues including climate change, economic recovery and migration among others.

However, with Trump's return to the White House in 2025, the relations between US and Canada again worsened following tariff and annexation threats, and this time, they are unlikely to improve in the near future. 

What Are the Issues Between US and Canada?

Tariff War Between US-Canada

The two major issues, that have caused a deep rift between US and Canada, are Trump's imposition of 25 per cent import tariffs, triggering a massive tariff war and the threats to annex Canada and make it the 51st state of the United States.

Mark Carney, who recently took over as Canada Prime Minister from Justin Trudeau, addressed the media in Ottawa, over Trump's tariffs. He said, “The old relationship we had with the United States, based on deepening integration of our economies and tight security and military co-operations, is over. The time will come for a broad renegotiation of our security and trade relationship.”

Apart from the tariffs already imposed on Canada, President Trump warned Canada of introducing harsher trade measures if they coordinated with the European Union. He wrote on Truth Social, “If the European Union works with Canada in order to do economic harm to the USA, large-scale Tariffs, far larger than currently planned, will be placed on them both in order to protect the best friend that each of those two countries has ever had!"

Responding to this, Carney said, ""What is clear is that we as Canadians have agency, we have power. We are masters in our own home. We can control our destiny."

US Threatens to Annex Canada, Make it 51st US State

Another major issue, that has severely strained the relationship between US and Canada is the annexation threat by Donald Trump. From the time of his election campaign, Trump has been talking about annexing Canada and making it the 51st state of the United States. 

Trump had once said, “I think Canada would be much better off being the 51st state because we lose $200 billion a year with Canada. And I'm not going to let that happen. Why are we paying $200 billion a year, essentially a subsidy to Canada?”

Mark Carney, who had been elected as Canada PM amid the annexation threats and tariff war, has now said that in the next few days, he will be holding a call with the US President, to discuss the tariffs and annexation threats. 

Also Read: 'USA Wants to Break Us, We Won't Let That Happen': Canadian PM Mark Carney's Stern Message for Trump

What's Next for US and Canada?

This is not the first time that there have been disagreements between Canada and the United States, however, the magnitude has seldom been this high. Trump's tariff announcement has been strongly met with retaliatory tariffs and under Mark Carney, Canada has refused to bow down to Trump's threats, both for tariffs and annexation. The two countries, if are able to communicate well and find a middle ground, can still be able to improve and revive their decades-old relationship.