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Macron, Trudeau meet ahead of G7 summit rattled by trade row
OTTAWA, June 7, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – French President Emmanuel Macron and
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meet in Ottawa on Wednesday to form a
united front ahead of a G7 summit in Quebec, where Donald Trump’s aggressive
trade policies are sure to raise hackles.
The two progressive forty-something leaders are scheduled to hold formal
talks and a private dinner on Wednesday, followed by a joint news conference
early Thursday.
Their discussions are likely to focus on Trump’s decision last week to
impose punishing tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum from Washington’s
closest allies, including Canada, the European Union and Japan.
In retaliation, all of them have either hit back with their own tariffs on
US goods or threatened to do so, as well as challenging the US trade measure
at the World Trade Organization.
Both Trudeau and Macron tried to persuade Trump not to impose the tariffs,
to no avail.
– Great disappointment –
The EU and Canada were originally shielded from the aluminum and steel
tariffs, but Trump put an end to that exemption last week.
Since then, Trudeau, Macron and other European leaders have toughened
their tone, lamenting what they see as rising US protectionism.
Macron — who had formed an unlikely bond with Trump — declined to
characterize his last conversation with the US leader, but unnamed White
House insiders told US media it was “terrible.”
Still, the French leader pledged to have a “productive and frank
discussion with President Trump at the G7.”
“It does not detract from the friendship we have for each other and the
friendship between our two countries,” he said.
Trudeau, who has been cordial with Trump, said in March he had received
assurances that Canada would be spared as they worked toward a revamp of a
1994 continental trade pact with the United States.
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But that all changed with the announcement of the US levies, and Trudeau
retaliated with Can$16.6 billion (US$12.9 billion) in tariffs on US goods.
The two sides are also deadlocked on the negotiations over the future of
their North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Mexico, with Ottawa
refusing to grant US demands for a sunset clause.
Canada has also rejected “for now” a proposal floated by the White House
for new separate US trade deals with Canada and Mexico.
The left-leaning Trudeau and Macron see each other as natural allies in a
world increasingly shaped by right-wing nationalism. That bond — called a
“bromance” by some analysts — should only grow deeper ahead of the G7 in
Quebec.
– ‘G6 + 1’ –
The Group of Seven summit on Friday and Saturday in La Malbaie, a small
town 140 kilometers (87 miles) from Quebec City, will bring together the
leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United
States.
Trudeau hopes to put the focus on jobs, security concerns, cleaning up the
world’s oceans and empowering women. But officials concede the agenda is
likely to be overtaken by trade disputes.
“I think it’s fair to expect that any discussions on the global economy…
in the current environment will quickly turn into a discussion about trade,”
a senior Canadian official told a briefing.
The other six members of the G7 are holding out hope they can find common
ground with Trump, but are prepared to stand up to US protectionism.
“The challenge is to try to preserve a form of unity within the G7, but
not hesitate to express firmly and strongly the interests of France and of
Europe,” Macron’s office said.
It is not even clear if the leaders will agree on a final statement.
At the last G7 summit in Taormina, Trump refused to sign the final joint
declaration, shortly after withdrawing the United States from the global
Paris climate accord.
Last week’s meeting of G7 finance ministers meeting in Whistler ended with
six members scolding Washington over its tariffs in what French Finance
Minister Bruno Le Maire described as the rise of the “G6+1.”
Trudeau’s office told AFP that he and Macron hoped to “strengthen
multilateralism and advance progressive trade,” adding: “We cannot presume
the final results of the G7, but we seek to reach consensus.”
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