United States President Donald Trump escalated trade tensions with Canada on Monday, threatening to withhold US approval for the opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge — a flagship infrastructure project designed to ease freight and commuter traffic between Windsor, Ontario, and Detroit, Michigan. In a combative Truth Social post, the US president argued that Canada had financed and built the crossing while allegedly sidelining American materials and industry, and insisted Washington must be “fully compensated” before the bridge is permitted to begin operations.

The $4.7-billion cable-stayed bridge, which began construction in 2018 and is expected to open later this year, is being funded by the Canadian federal government, with costs to be recouped through toll revenues. But Trump claimed the project had been allowed to circumvent US procurement rules, accusing the Obama administration of granting a waiver that enabled Canada to build it with “virtually no US content”, including American steel. The statement marks the latest flare-up in a relationship increasingly shaped by tariffs, industrial policy and competing strategies for trade diversification.

In the post, Trump set out his conditions in blunt terms, presenting the bridge as a commercial asset that would benefit Canada disproportionately because of access to the US market.

"I will not allow this bridge to open until the United States is fully compensated for everything we have given them, and also, importantly, Canada treats the United States with the Fairness and Respect that we deserve," Trump wrote in the post on Monday.

He added that Washington would initiate talks immediately over whether to provide a permit for the bridge, suggesting that the United States should secure a direct ownership stake.

“We will start negotiations, IMMEDIATELY. With all that we have given them, we should own, perhaps, at least one half of this asset. The revenues generated because of the US Market will be astronomical.”

The intervention introduces fresh uncertainty into a project that has long been politically sensitive on both sides of the border, not least because it directly competes with the privately owned Ambassador Bridge, the current main artery for road freight between the two countries.

The Gordie Howe International Bridge is poised to become the newest border crossing between Windsor, Ontario, and Detroit. Its completion has been closely watched by logistics firms and manufacturers reliant on North American supply chains, particularly in the automotive sector, where just-in-time delivery remains critical.

Bridge spokesperson Heather Grondin told CTV News in July 2025 that roughly 98% of the crossing was complete, with testing and staff training still underway. Officials have said the bridge is expected to open sometime this year, pending final approvals.

Named after Canadian hockey player Gordie Howe, the project has also endured years of legal challenges. Manuel “Matty” Moroun, the former private owner of the nearby Ambassador Bridge, fought construction in courts and publicly appealed to Trump during his first term in 2018 to revoke a presidential permit that Barack Obama granted to greenlight the crossing.

Trump’s bridge threat was folded into a broader denunciation of Canada’s trade posture, with particular focus on Ottawa’s efforts to deepen economic engagement with Beijing. He attacked Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, claiming a China deal would ultimately weaken Canada and harm US interests.

In his tirade against Carney, Trump said, “Prime Minister Carney wants to make a deal with China, which will eat Canada alive. We’ll just get the leftovers!”

Trump went further, repeating a claim he has made in recent weeks that Chinese influence would spill into Canadian cultural life.

“The first thing China will do is terminate ALL Ice Hockey being played in Canada, and permanently eliminate The Stanley Cup.”

Two weeks ago, Trump had threatened to slap 100% tariffs on Canadian goods if the country struck a trade deal with China.

"If Canada makes a deal with China, it will immediately be hit with a 100% Tariff against all Canadian goods and products coming into the U.S.A.," Trump said on Truth Social.

Canada has been seeking to diversify trade away from the US, its largest trade partner, following uncertainty caused by Trump’s on-again-off-again tariffs. PM Carney, speaking at the Davos forum last month, warned that the US-led global system of governance is enduring “a rupture”, while urging middle powers to coordinate more closely.

The Truth Social post also revived longstanding US complaints about Canadian market access, from dairy quotas to alcohol distribution. Trump accused Ontario of restricting American alcoholic products, describing the province’s policies as exclusionary and punitive.

"Ontario won't even put US spirits, beverages, and other alcoholic products, on their shelves, they are absolutely prohibited from doing so," he wrote.

He also singled out dairy protections, arguing that Canadian tariffs have harmed American farmers.

“The Tariffs Canada charges us for our Dairy products have, for many years, been unacceptable, putting our Farmers at great financial risk.”

The comments echo Trump’s first-term approach to trade, which frequently linked cross-border commerce to national pride and domestic manufacturing, and which framed bilateral disputes as evidence of foreign “taking advantage” of the United States.

The latest confrontation comes as the US and Canada prepare to renegotiate the USMCA, the continental trade pact agreed during Trump’s first administration. Analysts have warned that the talks could become a magnet for disputes over industrial subsidies, critical minerals, electric vehicles and supply chain security.

Canada’s recent deal with China has already drawn attention in Washington. Under the agreement reached between Carney and Chinese President Xi Jinping last week, China will lower levies on Canadian canola oil from 85% to 15% by March, while Canada will tax Chinese EVs at the most-favoured-nation rate, 6.1% – down from 100%.

The arrangement has been described as a breakthrough after years of strained ties, potentially opening the door to increased Chinese investment in Canada. Trump, however, has cast it as a strategic risk, arguing that it would give Beijing undue leverage over America’s northern neighbour.

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