Trudeau to offer Trump a trade of Canada for US states

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recounted a bizarre episode from his political career in which he jokingly offered Donald Trump a swap of part of Canada for US states. 

According to Trudeau, this conversation took place during one of their meetings and did not elicit the expected humorous response from Trump.

Speaking in an interview with Jake Tapper on NBC News, Trudeau said he proposed a swap for Vermont or California after Trump expressed interest in annexing Canada. However, the joke quickly lost its relevance.

"When I proposed such a swap, Trump immediately stopped finding it funny, and we changed the subject of the conversation," Trudeau shared.

The former Prime Minister has repeatedly stated publicly that Canada will never become part of the United States. In one of his posts on the social network X, he categorically rejected such ideas, writing: "No chance in hell that Canada becomes the 51st state."

Trump himself also recalled the meeting, describing it as productive. He mentioned that issues of immigration and the trade balance between the US and Canada were discussed during the meeting. At the same time, he put forward the idea of raising tariffs on Canadian imports, which drew sharp criticism from Trudeau.

Trudeau stated that the potential introduction of 25 per cent tariffs on goods from Canada would have a serious impact on the economies of both countries. According to him, if Trump begins to implement his plans, Canada will respond decisively.

"We are ready for a tough countermeasure if the tariffs become a reality," Trudeau said.

However, attitudes towards Trudeau's actions within Canada were mixed. The sudden resignation of Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, who expressed dissatisfaction with Trudeau's political course, further intensified the pressure on his administration. 

As a result, on 6 January, Trudeau announced his departure from the post of leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, which analysts believe was a consequence of both internal pressure and sharpened foreign policy challenges.