Canadian provincial leaders urged Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Wednesday to strengthen border security and defense spending to assuage US concerns, with Ontario Premier Doug Ford criticizing the federal government as “slow to react” and “stuck on its back foot.”
The meeting, called by Trudeau to unify premiers under a “Team Canada” banner to oppose tariff threats, instead revealed divisions between federal and provincial leadership.
“I expressed my hope that this evening’s meeting is the start of a more proactive approach from the federal government, including by showing that it takes the security of our border seriously,” Ford said in a statement, warning of the “economic chaos of Trump tariffs.”
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland and Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc pledged to boost border security, including investments in law enforcement and local police, though without specifying amounts or timelines.
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“The plan is here, it will evolve, and we will reassure Canadians and Americans that the people are in place,” LeBlanc said, citing a need for more “visible and public-facing measures” at the border.
“Now is not the moment to squabble among ourselves,” Freeland said. “There really was a strong agreement among every single person on the call that this is a challenge. The way we meet that challenge and the way we serve Canadians is by being strong, smart and united and by playing for Team Canada.”
The meeting followed Trump’s threat to impose tariffs on both Canada and Mexico over fentanyl and undocumented migrants — issues largely confined to the Mexico crossing. Later Wednesday, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum contradicted Trump’s claim about border closure, stating “Mexico’s stance is not to close borders, but to build bridges among governments and peoples.”
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Provincial leaders, including Quebec’s Francois Legault, Alberta’s Danielle Smith, and Manitoba’s Wab Kinew, demanded stronger federal action. Ontario and Alberta offered to deploy local police forces for border security, while Manitoba secured promises of new resources.
Trudeau has committed to meeting NATO’s 2% GDP defense spending target by 2032.
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