Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly talks to CNN's Christiane Amanpour about Trump's ideas on trade, military cooperation, annexation and more. #CNN #News
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00:00Canadian Foreign Minister
00:01Melanie Jolie joins us now
00:03from Toronto.
00:04Foreign Minister, welcome
00:06to the program.
00:07Can I first start with what is
00:09directly hitting your country?
00:13It is, I think your prime
00:14minister said, a trade war.
00:16The U.S. has launched a trade
00:17war.
00:18Can you tell me how this is
00:21affecting you, and did you ever
00:23expect your closest, you know,
00:26ally with a 5,000-mile border
00:29to get into this kind of fight
00:30with you?
00:33Well, this is completely
00:35unjustified and unjustifiable
00:37coming from the Trump
00:38administration.
00:39Canada is the biggest trading
00:41partner to the U.S.
00:42We're the biggest client.
00:44We buy more from American
00:46businesses than the U.K.,
00:48France, China, and Japan
00:50combined.
00:52So, when President Trump
00:55actually imposes 25% tariffs
00:57against our economy and starts
00:59a trade war, he is actually
01:02going after his own American
01:04people, because this will cost
01:06more for them at the pump,
01:09at the grocery store,
01:10or when they buy a new house
01:12or they want to do renovations.
01:15So, this will drive the cost
01:18of things and products and cost
01:20of living in the U.S.,
01:22and it will actually also hurt
01:25a lot of jobs in the U.S.
01:27and a lot of people will lose
01:28their job.
01:29So, there's nobody that is
01:31winning out of this,
01:32but President Trump still
01:34is continuing to attack
01:38the Canadian economy
01:39and, therefore, also
01:41the American people's cost
01:42of living.
01:43So, he just announced
01:44a 30-day reprieve
01:46and also with Mexico.
01:47I think in Canada,
01:48it's specifically on auto parts
01:51or the auto industry
01:52after being lobbied,
01:53I believe, by the U.S.
01:54auto industry.
01:56And you have said,
01:57but hang on a second,
01:58we're not going to go through,
02:00quote, this psycho drama
02:01every 30 days.
02:03What is this on-and-off-again
02:05thing?
02:06What does that do to a nation's
02:08economy?
02:11Mm-hmm.
02:12Well, of course, we can't go
02:13through that drama
02:14every single 30 days
02:16because this is creating
02:17too much uncertainty.
02:18And we know that business
02:20investments is allergic
02:22to any form of uncertainty.
02:24And we know, also,
02:25that President Trump wants
02:26to attract more of the
02:27investments to his own country,
02:30going against a very trade
02:31agreement that has bound us
02:33for many, many years.
02:34So, my point is this.
02:36We need to make sure
02:38that we are able to bring back
02:41certainty.
02:42But while doing that,
02:43and, of course, being in charge
02:45of the Canadian diplomacy,
02:47I'll be working on off-ramps.
02:48We'll find a way to get
02:50through this.
02:51But we are standing strong
02:52in Canada.
02:53Because, Kirsten, what's
02:54important for viewers
02:56to understand right now
02:57is the Trump administration
02:58has not only put trade
03:01as an issue on the table.
03:02They've been presenting
03:04many other things,
03:05including military
03:06cooperation, security
03:08and intelligence cooperation,
03:10water cooperation,
03:12and it could go on and on
03:13and on.
03:13And that's enough.
03:14Canadians have had enough.
03:16We are a strong country.
03:18We will defend our sovereignty.
03:20We'll defend our jobs.
03:21We'll defend our way of living.
03:23And we will make sure
03:24that, at the same time,
03:26the very targets of this
03:29trade war, the American people,
03:31are very much aware
03:32and are putting pressure
03:33on the president
03:35that is doing all of that
03:36to them and to us.
03:38So, that was pretty
03:40straightforward,
03:41what you just did.
03:42That's enough.
03:43Prime Minister Trudeau
03:44has also said the same,
03:45and he's responded.
03:47And he says in the next few
03:48weeks, I believe,
03:50tariffs on $100 billion
03:51of American goods coming in.
03:54And you've said it's
03:54an existential threat to you.
03:56Just a quick question.
03:58The Trump administration,
03:59the president says,
04:00too much fentanyl,
04:01too many migrants
04:02coming across the border.
04:07Well, that's not true
04:08because, fundamentally,
04:09less than 1% of fentanyl
04:11actually comes from Canada
04:13through the U.S.
04:14We know that there's a scourge
04:15of fentanyl in North America.
04:16We know that too many Canadians
04:18and American lives
04:20are being taken by this
04:22catastrophic drug.
04:23But, fundamentally,
04:25we have a very strong
04:26and secure border.
04:27We have $1.3 billion
04:30worth of investment
04:31in our new border plan.
04:33We've invested in more boots
04:34on the ground,
04:36Blackhawk helicopters,
04:37a new fentanyl strike force
04:39with the Americans.
04:40We also have a new fentanyl
04:42czar.
04:42We've done everything
04:44that was required
04:45under the executive order
04:48that President Trump signed
04:49to legitimize,
04:51to give him the powers
04:52to impose these tariffs.
04:54But, clearly, this is not
04:57the issue right now.
04:59This is a pretext.
05:00This is not the right argument
05:03because, fundamentally,
05:04the U.S. is a net exporter
05:06of illegal migrants,
05:07of illegal guns,
05:09and illegal drugs to Canada.
05:11So, what is at stake
05:12is more than that.
05:14President Trump wants to put us
05:17into a state where we are
05:19much more weakened economically
05:21in order, eventually, to annex us.
05:24He said that.
05:26He's questioned our border
05:27as well.
05:28So, while we've been working
05:30on the diplomatic level
05:32and working with many
05:33of his secretaries,
05:35working with him,
05:36and I've been involved
05:38in all of this, of course,
05:39with the Prime Minister
05:40and the Minister of Finance,
05:41Dominique Leblanc,
05:42here in Canada,
05:43it was important for Canadians
05:45and the world to know
05:46what is exactly happening.
05:49And when the U.S. decided
05:50to launch this trade war
05:52this week, well, we decided
05:53to make it public.
05:56You know, I mean,
05:58even Prime Minister Trudeau
05:59was caught on a hot mic
06:01or whatever saying to people,
06:02this is real,
06:03this threat to annex Canada
06:05and make it a 51st state.
06:07I mean, most people thought
06:08that was just a joke.
06:09It's a negotiating ploy.
06:10It's whatever it is.
06:11It's Trump being Trump.
06:13Why do you think it's serious?
06:15Why would America want to do
06:17that?
06:17And how can you stop them?
06:22Well, first, we can definitely
06:23stop them because Canadians
06:24are united.
06:25They're united to defend
06:27our country.
06:27They're united to defend
06:29our jobs and, as I was saying
06:30also, our way of life.
06:32We're not Americans.
06:33We're very proud of our country.
06:35And when you look back
06:36at our history,
06:38we created Canada at the time,
06:40and we were part of the British
06:41empire because we didn't want
06:42to be the United States.
06:44And as you can hear
06:45from my accent,
06:46I'm a Francophone from Canada,
06:48and there was also
06:49this grand bargain
06:49between Francophones
06:50and Anglophones to make sure,
06:51ultimately, that we could create
06:53a strong country in North
06:54America.
06:55So based on that, we want
06:58to make sure that we defend who
07:00we are as a country.
07:02And we've been shown too much
07:05disrespect by the Trump
07:06administration at this point,
07:07calling us a 51st state,
07:09calling our prime minister
07:10governor.
07:11This is not only a personal
07:12issue between Prime Minister
07:14Trudeau and President Trump.
07:16It's way more than that.
07:17It is much more than just
07:20the political rhetoric.
07:22It is a fundamental threat.
07:24So what we're doing at home
07:26is we need to make sure
07:27that there's less
07:28internal barriers
07:29between our provinces
07:30and territories, because that's
07:32an issue.
07:33We think we can offset a lot
07:35of the impacts of the tariffs
07:37coming from the United States
07:38by being much more aligned
07:39as a federation,
07:40economically speaking.
07:42We want to be closer to the UK
07:44like we did
07:45throughout our history.
07:46We want to be closer to Europe,
07:48closer also to Japan and also
07:53South Korea.
07:54And we'll continue to work
07:55with Mexico.
07:56That's just our reality.
07:57But fundamentally, if you ask me
07:59what President Trump wants,
08:00well, that's a question to ask
08:02to him.
08:03But we know that we have
08:04everything a country would dream
08:07of to have in the world.
08:09Why?
08:09Because we have all the energy
08:11necessary.
08:11We have all the fertilizers
08:13and potash necessary.
08:14We have all the land.
08:15And also, we're an agricultural
08:19superpower.
08:20We have all the uranium
08:21necessary, the hydroelectricity,
08:23the oil and gas.
08:24We have all the people,
08:26the critical minerals,
08:28the talent.
08:28I could go on and on and on.
08:30That's why we believe we're one
08:31of the best countries on Earth.
08:32And we're stable.
08:33We're democratic.
08:35We look out for each other.
08:36We have very strong social
08:37programs.
08:38You know, so we're a very stable
08:41democracy.
08:42Yeah, I want to ask you one
08:43more thing.
08:43You are talking...
08:45I have to tell you, it is
08:46really, I'm like, my mouth is
08:47dropped, my jaw is dropped.
08:49Here is a major ally with a
08:52common border, and you're
08:53talking about having to defend
08:55yourself against America and
08:56talking about separating
08:58yourself from America towards
09:00Mexico and Europe.
09:01It is, it is, it's just, I
09:05can barely internalize it.
09:06It's like the end of an era.
09:08But I want to ask you also, you
09:09said there are more threats
09:10regarding military cooperation
09:12than the rest, and they've
09:14threatened, apparently, to kick
09:16you out of Five Eyes.
09:17I want to know what that would
09:18do to you and what you think of
09:20their pause on intelligence
09:23sharing with Ukraine at this
09:25existential moment for that
09:26country.
09:30So, we believe that we have to
09:32expand our security-intelligence
09:34partnership with other countries
09:35as well.
09:37We, you know, we never started
09:39this.
09:40We're close to the American
09:41people.
09:42We're their neighbors.
09:43We're their best friends.
09:45We're their partners.
09:47So, we have many families and
09:48friends on the other side of the
09:49border, and we know that the
09:50American people don't agree with
09:53what President Trump says.
09:55We've heard it.
09:56So many of them have been
09:57apologizing for all the rhetoric
09:59that is coming out of the White
10:00House on this.
10:01But at the same time, it is
10:03important that our viewers, that
10:05the world know what's going on.
10:07And fundamentally, we will do
10:09the work to make sure that we
10:10have the partnerships that are
10:12necessary to protect ourselves
10:13and, at the same time, to
10:15protect others.
10:16If there's a country on Earth
10:17that understands the Americans,
10:19it's us.
10:20And so, we can explain to Europe
10:21what's going on.
10:22We can explain to our
10:24North Pacific partners, our
10:25Mexican and Latin American
10:27partners, our African partners,
10:29what's going on.
10:30And I could go on and on and on.
10:32But what I can tell you, though,
10:33about intelligence sharing, I
10:35was on a call with Marco Rubio,
10:38the Secretary of State,
10:40yesterday regarding this very
10:43issue of intelligence sharing.
10:45I raised it with him because I
10:46thought it was really, really
10:47important because I'm very
10:49concerned.
10:50We understand that Europe is at
10:51threat when Russia goes
10:53unchecked.
10:54We understand that.
10:55That's why we've been there...
10:56What did he say?
10:57...supporting NATO for 80 years.
10:59That's why.
11:01Well, he didn't confirm that
11:03that was the case.
11:04He was referring to the fact
11:06that it is important to have
11:09a good deal on Ukraine.
11:10And, indeed, it is important to
11:12have a good deal on Ukraine
11:13because not only is it
11:15important for Europe's security,
11:17but I'll end on that, Christian.
11:18It's important also for the
11:20security we have as Pacific
11:22nations, the U.S. and Canada,
11:24when it comes to China, because
11:26China is looking at what's going
11:27on in Europe and what's going on
11:29in Ukraine, and having a bad
11:31deal on Ukraine would send a
11:32message on Taiwan and actually
11:34to China, and that's dangerous
11:35for the world.
11:36Yeah, and it's just so
11:38interesting to hear you lay it
11:39out, and as we continue to
11:41follow this massive realignment
11:43that seems to be going on.
11:45Foreign Minister, thank you for
11:46being with us.