Canada to Trump: We Have Complaints About the Border, Too

(Bloomberg) -- Canada’s prime minister said it’s “in the interest of Canadians as well as Americans” to strengthen border security and raised concern about the rising volume of illegal guns and drugs flowing north from the US.

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Justin Trudeau made the comment the day after US President Donald Trump threatened again to put 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican goods, citing the flow of undocumented migrants and fentanyl across the borders from two of the US’s closest neighbors — and singling Canada out as a “very bad abuser.”

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But Trudeau said Canada has its own beefs about the border. Data from the Canada Border Services Agency show that some 2,000 of 7,700 prohibited weapons and firearms — seized at ports of entry between January and October last year — came from the US. In fact, guns used in the country’s worst mass shooting were smuggled into Canada from Maine.

During the same period, Canada’s border agents also seized more than 25,600 kilograms of illegal drugs both inbound and outbound, and fentanyl made up less than 1% of that volume. Some 84% of the 4.9 kilograms that were seized were headed for the Netherlands, and Canada was a negligible source of illicit opioids to the US.

US border officials encountered 169,474 people attempting to cross the border from the northern nation into the US who were inadmissible or expelled in the first 10 months of last year. Most of those were people who went through a regular border crossing but were denied entry. The number trying to sneak into the US was 21,155.

At the same time, Canada’s border agency identified some 34,000 foreign nationals seeking to enter Canada from the US through a port of entry whom officers believed to be inadmissible. The agency said that’s an increase of about 30% from last year.

Trudeau’s government unveiled a C$1.3-billion ($907 million) plan to strengthen border security in December in an effort to address Trump’s concerns and avert tariffs. The prime minister said Tuesday that the package was “yes, about the American incoming administration, but it’s also about Canadians being safe in a more uncertain world.”

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His chief rival, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, called on Trudeau to reconvene Parliament to pass new border controls, as well as agree on trade retaliation and prepare a plan for Canada’s economy. Trudeau requested the suspension of Parliament on Jan. 6, when he announced he would resign pending a race to replace him as Liberal leader and prime minister.

“Liberals have shut Parliament in the middle of this crisis. Canada has never been so weak, and things have never been so out of control. Liberals are putting themselves and their leadership politics ahead of the country,” Poilievre said in a statement Tuesday.

Trudeau can implement retaliatory tariffs without legislative approval. Parliament is set to resume March 24, and soon after the Conservatives and other main opposition parties are expected to vote non-confidence in the government, triggering an election.

Also on Tuesday, the Toronto Police Service said it had seized C$83 million of cocaine that originated in Mexico and came through the US. The force called the seizure its largest-ever cocaine bust and arrested six people, including two Mexican nationals.

(Adds statement from Conservative leader in paragraphs eight-10.)

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