Incoming US President Donald Trump has doubled down on his suggestions that Canada should be made the 51st State of the USA.
“You get rid of that artificially drawn line, and you take a look at what that looks like, and it would also be much better for national security. Canada and the United States, that would really be something,” the BBC quoted Trump on Tuesday.
The latest calls came after a series of jabs that Trump has thrown at outgoing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau over the past several weeks in which he refers to Trudeau as the Governor of the State of Canada!
The BBC further quoted Trump as saying that he would not consider using military force to make Canada part of the United States. He then went on to raise concerns about Canada’s military spending.
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“They have a very small military. They rely on our military. It’s all fine, but, you know, they got to pay for that. It’s very unfair,” the BBC quoted him as saying.
Trump has also suggested that he might use the United States’ economic might to compel Canada into formally joining the United States as the 51st State.
The BBC quoted economists warning that if Trump follows through on imposing the tariffs he has suggested after he is inaugurated on 20 January, Canada’s economy would be significantly injured.
“Almost C$3.6bn ($2.5bn) worth of goods and services crossed the border daily in 2023, according to Canadian government figures,” the BBC stated.
