Ontario premier Doug Ford has announced the cancellation of a multimillion-euro contract with Elon Musk’s Starlink as tensions between Canada and the United States escalate. The move comes as a response to US President Donald Trump’s latest tariffs on Canadian goods.
Ford, leader of Canada’s largest province, signed a €66 million (100 million Canadian dollars) deal with Starlink in November to provide high-speed internet to rural residents. However, he has now declared that the agreement will be scrapped and American firms will be barred from bidding on provincial contracts.
“We’ll be ripping up the province’s contract with Starlink. Ontario won’t do business with people hellbent on destroying our economy,” Ford stated on X, formerly Twitter. He further warned that American companies would lose out on “tens of billions of dollars” in potential revenue due to Ontario’s retaliatory measures.
The decision follows Canada and Mexico imposing retaliatory tariffs on US goods after Trump introduced sweeping trade measures targeting Canadian products. Over the weekend, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced 25 per cent tariffs on goods worth €20 billion (30 billion Canadian dollars), including beverages, cosmetics, and paper products.
An additional €83 billion (125 billion Canadian dollars) worth of American goods will face tariffs in the near future. This list is set to include passenger vehicles, trucks, steel, aluminium, fruits, vegetables, beef, pork, and dairy products.
The growing trade dispute signals deepening economic tensions between the neighbouring nations, with significant consequences for businesses on both sides of the border.
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