Montreal, Canada - Prime Minister Mark Carney said Wednesday he doesn't want to use Canada's oil as leverage in talks with the US, which announced new tariffs on Canadian products last week.
Drawn mainly from the oil sands in the Alberta province, Canadian oil accounts for nearly 60% of US crude oil imports, according to the US Energy Information Administration.
Asked whether he would use Canada's oil as a pressure tactic during a trip to Alberta, Carney said he did not "see the value" in that strategy.
"Canadians can be trusted," Carney said. "One of the biggest commodities – arguably the best – is trust. People trust us. And so when you're a supplier of a key commodity... you gotta think really hard about not supplying."
US President Donald Trump signed an order last week imposing an additional 50% tariff on Canadian products such as wine, hockey sticks and cement.
The latest round of tariffs extends to products entering the US under the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement and is slated to take effect August 19. Washington has excluded from tariffs several sectors that are considered essential, including energy, fishery products and critical minerals.
Canada wants to reach an agreement with the US to avoid the new tariffs, and sent Minister for Trade Relations Dominic LeBlanc to meet with White House Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on Wednesday.
"We are three weeks away from the August deadline," Carney said, declining to note any retaliatory measures at Canada's disposal if tariffs take effect. "We're engaged in those negotiations to look to find a mutually beneficial solution."