Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc is set to meet U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Washington on Tuesday, marking their third face-to-face meeting in as many weeks as the two countries continue negotiations over escalating trade tensions. LeBlanc’s trip comes after his planned flight to Washington on Monday was diverted back to Montreal because of severe weather. Canada’s chief trade negotiator, Janice Charette, was already in Washington on Monday for discussions with officials from Greer’s office.
The latest meeting comes just days before an Aug. 19 deadline, when the United States plans to impose 50 per cent tariffs on roughly five per cent of Canadian exports to the U.S. The targeted products include goods ranging from alcohol and hockey sticks to cement. Canadian negotiators are seeking to prevent the new tariffs while also pushing Washington for relief from existing sectoral duties affecting Canadian steel, aluminum, lumber and automobiles.
Ottawa is also hoping the negotiations will lead to an extension of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement, or CUSMA, after the Trump administration declined to renew the trade agreement in July. The United States has raised several trade concerns with Canada, including provincial restrictions on U.S. alcohol, treatment of American motor vehicles and longstanding disputes involving Canada’s dairy sector.
The provincial restrictions on American alcohol have already had a significant impact on U.S. exports. According to U.S. Census Bureau figures cited in the report, wine exports to Canada fell by US$360 million in 2025 compared with the previous year, while spirit exports declined by US$150 million. LeBlanc and Charette are not expected to comment publicly before or after Tuesday’s scheduled negotiations.
