This article originally appeared in the Financial Post. Below is an excerpt from the article.
By Jack Mintz, March 7, 2025
Two events this past week clearly demonstrate that the world order has been turned upside down and inside out. The diplomatic dustup in Washington between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has left the NATO alliance in tatters, with U.S. security guarantees to its allies very much in doubt, while the pending imposition of U.S. tariffs on Mexico and Canada, who are to be joined by Europe, will strain economic relationships among western economies.
Even if Trump backs off on tariffs, the U.S. will no longer be viewed as a reliable ally. The old, postwar world order in which U.S. supremacy enforced international rules is now passé. Instead, a new world order recreates the prewar pattern of nationalistic fiefdoms competing with each other.
The perilous question for Canada is choosing our place in Trump’s new world order. Do we tie ourselves closer to the U.S. for security and economic reasons? Or do we try to reduce our dependency on the U.S. by seeking stronger relations with Europe and other allies?
A 25 per cent tariff, even with a 10 per cent carve-out for energy-related products, will raise enormous pressures on Canada and Mexico. A new paper from prominent German think-tank CESifo estimates the impact on Mexico and Canada and, in a word, it’s simply awful.
***TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE, VISIT THE FINANCIAL POST HERE***
Jack Mintz is the President’s Fellow at the University of Calgary’s school of public policy and a distinguished fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute.
