Canada

Canada should impose trade sanctions on the U.S. if President Biden does not reconsider his decision to block the completion of the Keystone XL pipeline and open a dialogue with the Canadian government, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said on Wednesday.  

Canada has requested dispute settlement consultations with the U.S. under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement over safeguard restrictions President Trump applied to solar imports in 2018, contending the measures violate the deal’s language on trade remedies and customs duties.

“While Article 24.2 states that an environmental policy may not be a ‘disguised restriction on trade or investment,’ there is no indication that is applicable in this situation.”

The European Union, Canada, Japan and 10 other countries on Monday pledged to launch an initiative on medical supplies aimed at identifying steps World Trade Organization members can take to facilitate trade and better position countries amid the public health crisis.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is prepared to take action to enforce the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) said on Tuesday, citing a conversation with USTR Robert Lighthizer last week.

The Trump administration has not successfully enforced commitments made by Mexico and Canada in implementing the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, Senate Finance Committee ranking member Ron Wyden (D-OR) charged on Friday, citing labor and agricultural concerns, among others.

The railway system would link Sinaloa, Mexico, to Winnipeg, Canada, running through Dallas and Chicago.

The U.S. has effectively halted its World Trade Organization dispute with Canada over Washington’s countervailing duties on softwood lumber, appealing the panel report, which faulted the U.S. duties, into the void of a nonfunctioning Appellate Body.