The leader of Ontario, Canada’s most populous province, said Monday he will pause all retaliatory measures against the United States after news broke that the threat of tariffs has been put on hold for a month.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford said earlier Monday that he was ripping up a contract with Elon Musk’s Starlink internet service in response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs on Canada.
Ford had also said he was also banning the sale of American booze and blocking American companies from provincial contracts.
“We have some good news today. We have temporarily averted tariffs that would have severely damaged our economy, giving time for more negotiation and time for cooler heads to prevail,” Ford said in a statement. “With the U.S. pausing tariffs, Ontario will also pause our retaliatory measures.”
Ford said Canada and Ontario continue to stare down the threat of tariffs.
“Whether it’s tomorrow, in a month or a year from now when we’re renegotiating the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, President Trump will continue to use the threat of tariffs to get what he wants,” Ford said.
Trump on Monday agreed to a 30-day pause on his tariff threats against Mexico and Canada as America’s two largest trading partners took steps to appease his concerns about border security and drug trafficking.
The pauses provide a cool-down period after a tumultuous few days that put North America on the cusp of a trade war that could have crushed economic growth, caused prices to soar and ended two of the United States’ most critical partnerships.
“Proposed tariffs will be paused for at least 30 days while we work together,” Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau posted Monday afternoon on X, saying his government would name a fentanyl czar, list Mexican cartels as terrorist groups and launch a “Canada-U.S. Joint Strike Force to combat organized crime, fentanyl and money laundering.”
Ford signed a Canadian $100-million ($68 million) contract with Musk’s company in November to deliver high-speed internet to remote residents in rural and northern Ontario.
Ford said U.S.-based businesses would lose out on “tens of billions of dollars” in new revenue as a result of Ontario’s response.
Ontario and other provinces already planned to remove American liquor brands from government store shelves. The Liquor Control Board of Ontario sells nearly CA$1 billion ($687 million) worth of American wine, beer, spirits and seltzers every year, Ford said.
Canada and Mexico had ordered retaliatory tariffs on American goods in response to sweeping tariffs proposed by Trump. Ford had earlier encouraged businesses to put the Canadian flag on products so Canadians know what to buy.
