A Trade War Is on Hold, but Trump’s Motives and a Fix Remain Uncertain

When I returned to Windsor, Ontario, the day before President Trump was set to impose potentially devastating tariffs on exports from Canada, fear was the city’s prevailing mood. A week later, following Mr. Trump’s suspension of a 25 percent tariff on most exports and 10 percent on oil, the mood has shifted more toward anger and the nation’s focus has moved toward alternatives to the United States.

Whether Mr. Trump will impose the tariffs in early March remains unknown. But Matina Stevis-Gridneff and I found that whatever happens, relations between Canada and the United States have undergone a profound shift.

[Read: Betrayed: How Trump’s Tariff Threats Tore the U.S.-Canada Bond]

If the tariffs do come into effect, Windsor will be hit particularly hard. It has been nearly 60 years since Canada and the United States started integrating their automotive industries through a trade deal known as the auto pact. The North American Free Trade Agreement then brought Mexico into the mix.