When US president spoke at the Davos International Economic Conference in Davos, Switzerland, January 19, 2026, he picked on three partners, the European Union, Denmark and Canada for being ungrateful for the military and economic protection they have received since World War II (1945).
He turned to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. “I met him yesterday, he wasn’t so much grateful. Mark, just remember this, Canada exists because of the United States.”
Open war!
In fact, since Trump came to power in January 2025, he has sought to correct what he believes to be a welfare relationship between Canada, the European Union and the US-with the US being “suckered” (his word) into paying for all the major bills.
His first major attempt to correct this state of affairs affects the tariff regime. Under the Canada-US Free Trade Agreement (1988) many of the tariffs between the two countries were removed, making the two countries a free-trade zone. This was followed by the North Atlantic Free Trade Agreement (1994) under president Bill Clinton.
Trump is correct in arguing that these two agreements favored the cheap labour and less regulated countries against the high labor cost over regulated countries such as the US.
The result was a corrosive de-industrialization of the US in favor of Mexico and Canada and the death of trade unions faced by manufacturing migration overseas.
Democrats had abandoned working classes, leading to the rise of Maga (Make American Great Again) and the overwhelming election of Trump twice, 2016 and 2024.
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As we speak, the Canadian PM is in a fight to the death with Trump on several fronts-one of them being the capture of a 30% of the US lumber (housing) market by Canadian timber industries.
Canadians have an advantage over US timber manufacturers, having captured US$7 billion market share (30%). Trump imposed a 10% “security” risk, plus “dumping” fees, raising the tariffs to 35-45 percent.
Carney has suspended talks-he sees no way out in this harsh environment created by Trump.
Trump has attacked Canada’s dairy and milk products which protects Canadian farmers and excludes US dairy products by placing a 200% tariff.
The Canadian Supply Management policy is similar to the Rhodesian Grain Marketing Board policies which guaranteed prices to farmers.
Government absorbed losses while it shared bonusses in case world prices proved more bountiful than anticipated.
US farmers, compared to Canadian small family farmers, are so huge that if they had been allowed free reign, they could have crowded the Canadian small farmers out of business.
In any case, Trump argues that the quota granted US farmers is a trick, either one accepts free competition, or none at all.
Canadian prime minister has suspended negotiations on this front as well.
Trump’s mind is made up, open Canada’s dairy market or he will close the US market to Canadian dairy products.
Wherever Carney turns, he finds that Trump is making trouble for him. In the good old days, when Canada and the US were on friendly terms, and there were no border inspections for travelers between the two countries, it was agreed to share the use of the Columbia River Valley (British Columbia) with its neighbors in the US, in Colorado and Idaho.
The River Treaty (1964) was a “big beautiful thing” (Trump). Canada saved US states from flooding by building three dams in British Columbia.
The US paid US$64 million as compensation for 50 years in advance.
That is the problem. The treaty ends in July 2026. Two Thousand First Nation (Canadian Natives 1964) were removed from their “spiritual lands” (their words) and were not compensated.
The US, now under Trump, is ready to curse them out if they but talk “big” about “native rights.” In any case, US states of Idaho and Colorado are suffering, no longer from floods, but from droughts.
Trump’s administration wants the Canadians to “bloody use all those ice mountains” as reservoirs by expanding the three dams. An additional 5.5 million acres of native land will be under water.
Somewhere in the Columbia Treaty (1964) there is a clause which anticipated that in case the US built dams in the lower Columbia Valley, some 50% of the profits generated from the power plants would be shared with Canada.
We can mention that the 1964 agreement was supervised by two of the most decent people in the world at that time, Canadian prime minister John Diefenbaker and US president General Dwight Eisenhower.
When the issue of shared profits was mentioned, the Trump administration, which is now run by cowboys and mafia types told the Canadian delegation some bad words. “GO kiss yourself!” I have cleaned the bad words in the original.
As we go to press, the Canadians have suspended these negotiations as well.
Prime Minster Carney has realised that there is no use acting nice to Trump and his goons as they are in no mood for a soft landing.
*Ken Mufuka is a Zimbabwean patriot.
