Trump pauses 50% tariffs on Canada after deal, says Keystone XL could be revived

The tariffs had been scheduled to take effect Wednesday morning before Trump announced the last-minute reprieve following negotiations with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.

“I have paused the 50% Tariffs against Canada, that were scheduled to kick in tomorrow morning for a three day period,” Trump posted on Truth Social, “based on the fact that Canada and the U.S.A., subject to the finalization of documents, have a DEAL!”

Trump added, “The great Keystone XL Pipeline, long ago killed by Sleepy Joe Biden, may be awoken from the grave!”

The president followed the announcement with an AI-generated image depicting himself pulling a pipeline marked “Keystone” from the ground beside a broken tombstone reading “Buried by Biden.”

The announcement came less than two hours before the tariffs were set to begin and after negotiations between Trump and Carney continued throughout the day, according to the New York Post.

Keystone XL was designed to transport as much as 830,000 barrels of crude oil per day from Alberta through the United States to Nebraska, connecting with an existing pipeline network serving Gulf Coast refineries. The project became a major political battle during the Obama administration before Trump revived its cross-border permit during his first administration. Former President Joe Biden revoked that permit on his first day in office in January 2021, and developer TC Energy subsequently terminated the project.

Trump's proposed tariffs would reportedly have covered approximately $20 billion in Canadian goods, including products such as cement, wine, and hockey sticks. Energy products, critical minerals, fish, and potash were among the goods expected to remain exempt. Canada had threatened retaliatory measures if the tariffs took effect, raising the prospect of an escalating trade dispute between two countries that exchanged roughly $880 billion in goods and services last year.

Carney had publicly characterized the negotiations as sensitive as the deadline approached. ″We are negotiating,” Carney told reporters Monday in French. “The negotiations are very intense and delicate. This is not the time to talk about negotiations in public.”

Trump announced the 50 percent duties in July, citing Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930, which allows a president to impose tariffs of up to 50 percent against countries found to discriminate against American commerce.

Trump has accused Canada of unfairly restricting American products, including automobiles, alcohol, and cheese.

The three-day pause now gives Washington and Ottawa a narrow window to finalize the agreement, with Trump's announcement signaling that Keystone XL could be part of the bargain.