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“I can’t speak for the Mexicans,” he told reporters in comments echoed by Canada’s trade minister. “We will cooperate on trilateral matters when it’s in our interest and we’ll be looking to do things that are in our interest bilaterally also. Some of them may be within Nafta, some may not be.”

Trudeau talked with Pena Nieto on Sunday, releasing a short summary afterward saying they “spoke about the importance of the Canada-Mexico bilateral relationship, and of the trilateral North American partnership.”



‘Collateral Damage’

Since Trump’s election victory, Canadian trade officials and observers have held out hope they’re not Trump’s target. Canada is the top buyer of U.S. goods overall and the top buyer for 35 individual states, a detail Trudeau emphasized to Trump in a call Saturday. What Canadians fear is that any tariffs or other measures applied broadly will sideswipe them. Roughly 70 per cent of Canadian trade is with the U.S.

“I don’t think Canada’s the focus at all, but I think we are part of that,” MacNaughton said. “That’s what we’ve got to worry about — is if we’re collateral damage.”

Trump officials have yet to raise any specific concerns about Canadian trade, MacNaughton added. “Their biggest concern frankly in terms of trade is the deficits they have with China and Mexico. That’s what they’ve raised.”

Trudeau has prepared for the Trump era by promoting his trade minister, Chrystia Freeland, to serve as foreign minister and his main liaison for talks with Trump. He appointed a retired general as her deputy with a specific focus on wooing the U.S. administration, and reshuffled staff to focus on U.S. ties.