Trump blocks opening of new Canada-US bridge

United States President Donald Trump threatened this Monday (10) to block the inauguration of a new international bridge between the USA and Canada unless Ottawa accepts negotiations on trade conditions and economic compensation demanded by Washington. The threat was made in a long post on his social network Truth Social, repeating criticisms he has made of Ottawa for “unfair treatment” in bilateral relations.

The bridge in question is the Gordie Howe International Bridge, a US$4.6 billion structure financed mostly by Canada and under construction since 2018 to connect Windsor (Ontario) to Detroit (Michigan), scheduled to open in early 2026. The project was negotiated by authorities from both countries and seen as a way to improve the flow of trade and reduce border congestion.

In the post, Trump argued that Canada had “treated the United States very unfairly for decades” and criticized the fact that the work was approved with “virtually no American content,” including steel, also citing tariff issues on dairy products and the exclusion of North American alcoholic products from shelves in Ontario. He attributed part of the situation to former President Barack Obama’s granting of a Buy American Act waiver.

“I will not allow this bridge to be opened until the United States is fully compensated for all we have given them, and also until Canada treats the United States with the fairness and respect we deserve,” Trump wrote, adding that Washington should have “at least half” ownership of the asset and that negotiations would begin “IMMEDIATELY.”

The dispute comes amid a series of trade tensions between the two countries, including high tariffs on Canadian products imposed by the US in recent months and Ottawa’s efforts to seek new trade agreements with China, an action that Trump also criticized in his publication, even hyperbolically stating that this would “eat Canada alive”.

Officials in the US representing the state of Michigan reacted with concern. Democratic lawmakers have warned that blocking the project could harm the local economy by increasing costs for companies, affecting supply chains and reducing jobs, highlighting that the Detroit-Windsor corridor is one of the most important for bilateral trade.

On the Canadian side, Prime Minister Mark Carney stated that he and Trump spoke about the issue and that the issue will be resolved, without detailing terms, amid diplomatic pressure to ease the crisis.

Critics of Trump’s position point out that the Gordie Howe Bridge project already had support from officials from both parties in the US and Canada, and that its construction was considered essential to modernize a border crossing point that has been congested for decades. They also point out that the US did not undertake significant direct spending on the work, which makes the requirement for compensation and equity participation controversial.