test Friday Focus: A late night tariff announcement and Canada's plan to recognize a Palestinian state - Munk Debates

Friday Focus: A late night tariff announcement and Canada’s plan to recognize a Palestinian state

August 1, 2025
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Friday Focus: A late night tariff announcement and Canada’s plan to recognize a Palestinian state

Rudyard and Janice start the show with Trump’s late night tariff announcement which sets a 35% tariff on Canada, but only really affects 10% of goods that fall outside of CUSMA. The punishing tariffs on aluminum, steel, and the auto industry, however, remain. Why did Mark Carney not try to strike a deal before today’s deadline? What will happen if CUSMA protections are removed in a future deal? And how should Canada prioritize its sovereignty and self-respect in negotiations that give us privileged access to the US market? In the second half of the show Rudyard and Janice talk about Canada’s announcement that it will join France and the UK in recognizing Palestinian statehood at the UN in September. While it is understandable that western governments want to do something to stop the carnage in Gaza and bring an end to this war, this type of political statement emboldens Hamas and makes the conflict more intractable and less solvable. In the midst of this turmoil, however, came a surprising announcement from surrounding Arab countries: the governments of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, Turkey and the UAE called on Hamas to disarm and end its rule over the war torn strip. Is this the start of the end for the terrorist group’s reign in Gaza?

Thank you to this week’s Munk Curators and Supporters. Your contribution supports our efforts to bring back civil and substantive dialogue to the public square.

 

Curators:

Nathan F

Isabelle F

Malcolm J

 

 

 

Supporters:

John R

Rylan M

Urshila C

Hania M

Lawrence G

William R

Marc D

Arian R

 

 

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