Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - February 3, 2025, Winnipeg, Manitoba Heart disease is the number 1 killer of Canadian women. It doesn’t have to be. February is Heart Month. You make a difference for women like Patti by supporting women’s heart health research at St. B. Give today at bealifeline.ca SERVING MANITOBA SINCE 1872. FOREVER WITH YOUR SUPPORT. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2025 WEATHER FLURRIES. HIGH -17 — LOW -26 ARTS GRAMMY SURPRISE PERFORMERS, WINNERS / D1 Retaliation on U.S. goods after president orders tariffs to start Tuesday JIM BRONSKILL OTTAWA — Ottawa is imposing 25 per cent tariffs on hundreds of goods originating in the United States — from meat and milk to carpets and curtains — in response to steep new American levies against Canada. A federal official also signalled that Canada will pursue available legal remedies in response to the U.S. breaching its international trade commitments. The federal government released a detailed list of the retaliatory tariffs on $30 billion in goods Sun- day, less than 24 hours after U.S. President Donald Trump forcibly dragged Canada into an unprece- dented trade war. Trump signed executive orders Saturday evening to hit America’s closest neighbour with damaging duties of 10 per cent on energy and 25 per cent on everything else. Canada’s initial response takes effect Tuesday, when the U.S. tar- iffs are applied. In three weeks, Ottawa plans to add another $125 billion in tariffs on many other U.S. goods after consulting with industry. The federal government says the second list will include items such as cars, trucks, buses, steel and aluminum, aerospace products and fruits and vegetables. The government is also taking steps to ease the effects of the countermeasures on Canadians by launching a process to allow busi- nesses to request exceptional relief from the tariffs. Many Canadians weren’t waiting for the government to retaliate. Some took to social media to announce they are cancelling subscriptions to U.S. streaming ser- vices, pledging not to travel south and sharing lists and videos of Canadian-made items to help avoid buying American brands. Politicians are pushing the buy-Canadian plan as well. Canada responds to Trump trade war Manitoba to stop buying, selling U.S. booze A MERICAN beers, wines and other alcohol will soon be pulled from Liquor Mart shelves, Premier Wab Kinew an- nounced Sunday, responding to U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to levy steep tariffs on Canadian goods. The move, which will come into effect Tuesday and also requires the retailer to stop ordering Ameri- can products, is expected to take an $80-million bite annually out of the U.S. economy, Kinew said, warning about the seriousness of Trump’s actions. “This is a trade dispute, this is an economic threat, but we should also be very, very clear-eyed about the threat that this poses to our sover- eignty as an independent country,” Kinew told reporters. “If we bow down at this current moment, then what is the next edict that we will be told to respond to as Manitobans and Canadians?” A flurry of tariff announcements kicked off over the weekend. On Saturday, Trump signed an executive order setting in motion 25 per cent tariffs on imported Canadian goods and 10 per cent on Canadian oil and energy starting Tuesday. Trump, who fulfils a campaign promise with the order, has blamed his tariff plans on a lack of border security, saying that Canada has allowed a flow of drugs and undocumented migrants into the U.S. By Saturday evening, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau responded in kind, saying that Canada would im- plement a 25 per cent tariffs against $155-billion worth of U.S. goods, with initial tariffs applied to $30-billion of goods on Tuesday and another round on the remaining $125-billion in three weeks’ time. These tariffs will apply to a wide range of U.S. goods, including alcohol, vegetables, clothing, furniture, sports equipment and lumber, Trudeau said. Trudeau also emphasized that Can- ada has made large investments in border security, noting that “less than one per cent of fentanyl, less than one per cent of illegal crossings into the United States come from Canada.” On Sunday, Kinew said his govern- ment’s directive to pull American alcohol will be one of a series of steps to stand up to what he repeatedly referred to as the “Trump tariff tax.” The province has also launched a 24-7 hotline for business owners and workers seeking information about the tariffs. Upcoming plans include targeted “tax deferrals and other supports for business,” Kinew said. Asked whether eliminating PST on Canadian-made products was an op- tion while tariffs are in place, Kinew paused to consider the idea, but didn’t make any commitments. Kinew encouraged Manitobans to think about changing their habits in the long term — whether shopping local, buying Manitoba-made goods, thinking carefully about where they take their vacations or making a “switch to Crown Royal.” “I’m asking you to buy Canadian beer and to buy Canadian wine and Canadian liquor, as part of us stick- ing up for our jobs and sticking up for our economy,” he said. Other provinces, including Ontario, B.C. and Newfoundland and Labra- dor, previously announced they’re pulling American products from provincially run liquor stores as part of their retaliatory plans. (Kinew said Sunday that he is not giving any directives to private retailers.) MARSHA MCLEOD AND KATIE MAY JOHN WOODS / FREE PRESS ‘We should also be very, very clear-eyed about the threat that this poses to our sovereignty,’ Premier Wab Kinew says at a press conference at the legislature Sunday. Israel’s Netanyahu heads to U.S. to discuss ‘victory over Hamas’ with Trump TEL AVIV, Israel — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday he will discuss “victory over Hamas,” countering Iran and expand- ing diplomatic relations with Arab countries in his meeting with Presi- dent Donald Trump. Tuesday’s meeting at the White House will be Trump’s first with a for- eign leader since returning to office. It comes as U.S. and Arab mediators be- gin the daunting work of brokering the next phase of a ceasefire agreement to wind down the 15-month war in Gaza. Hamas, which has reasserted control over Gaza since the ceasefire began last month, has said it will not release hostages in the second phase without an end to the war and Israeli forces’ full withdrawal. Netanyahu is under mounting pressure from far-right governing partners to resume the war after the first phase ends in early March. He has said Israel is committed to victory over Hamas and the return of all hos- tages captured in the militants’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack that triggered the war. It’s unclear where Trump stands. He has been a staunch supporter of Israel, but has also pledged to end wars in the Middle East and took credit for helping to broker the cease- fire agreement. The deal has led to the release of 18 hostages as well as hundreds of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. An Israeli airstrike on a vehicle in central Gaza wounded five people Sunday, including a child who was in critical condition, according to Al-Aw- da Hospital. Israel’s military said it fired on the vehicle because it was bypassing a checkpoint while head- ing north in violation of the ceasefire agreement. Ahead of his departure, Netanya- hu said he and Trump would discuss “victory over Hamas, achieving the release of all our hostages and dealing with the Iranian terror axis in all its components,” referring to Iran’s alliance of militant groups across the region, including Hamas. TIA GOLDENBERG ● MANITOBA, CONTINUED ON A2 ● TARIFFS, CONTINUED ON A3 ● MORE COVERAGE ON A2, A3 ● NETANYAHU, CONTINUED ON A5 ;