US President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, in June last year. [Getty Images]
US President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, in June last year. [Getty Images]

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US President Donald Trump lashed out at Canada on Sunday, saying the country "wants the benefits of being a state without actually becoming one," as trade tensions between the two countries escalated following the collapse of negotiations.

Trump made the remarks on Truth Social on Sunday local time, writing that Canada "wants the benefits of being a state, without being a state." He went on to say, "They have been charging our great farmers massive tariffs for a long time. No more."

The post marked Trump's first public response since US-Canada trade talks broke down on Friday.

Following the breakdown, the United States imposed new 50 percent tariffs on Canadian wine, dairy products, cement, clothing and ice hockey equipment — on top of existing high-rate tariffs already in place on Canadian steel, aluminum and automobiles. The newly targeted goods are worth about $20 billion, representing roughly 5 percent of all US imports from Canada.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, in a national address Saturday morning, said the two countries were "at war" and vowed to retaliate with counter-tariffs.

Trump's latest remarks extend a pattern since his return to office of repeatedly suggesting Canada should become the 51st state of the United States. He has made the claim multiple times, arguing that Canada would enjoy greater economic and security benefits as a US state — comments that have drawn wide anger from Canadian politicians and the public.

Carney said the US had put forward "unacceptable" conditions during the negotiations, including attempts to restrict Canada's ability to sign new trade agreements with third countries.

British Columbia Premier David Eby criticized the US approach, saying Washington had sought to reduce Canada to the economic equivalent of "the 51st state."


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