Overview
- Speaking in Singapore at CNBC's CONVERGE LIVE event, Justin Trudeau said pressure from Western allies created what he called economic coercion that almost drove Canada to seek Chinese partners.
- He pointed to Bombardier’s C Series jet program, saying pressure from Boeing and Airbus choked sales while Chinese investors offered a “dump truck full of money” to strike a deal.
- Trudeau said he pressed the issue at the 2017 G7 in Sicily, telling Emmanuel Macron, Angela Merkel, and Donald Trump that their actions were pushing Canada toward Chinese financing to protect aerospace jobs.
- The program’s outcome shifted when Airbus took a majority stake in 2018, rebranded the jet as the A220, and then bought the remaining stake in 2020, moves that preserved thousands of jobs in Quebec.
- He also tied U.S. tariff moves under President Donald Trump, including a cited 50% aluminum tariff and auto‑sector threats, to Canada’s push to diversify buyers by signing supply deals in Europe and looking beyond the U.S. market.