The US president said he would not allow a new bridge to be built between the Canadian province of Ontario and the US state of Michigan until the US received “full compensation.” Donald Trump wrote about this on his social media platform Truth Social.
“Everyone knows that Canada has treated the United States very unfairly for decades. Now everything is changing in favor of the US, and quickly!” he said.
The head of the White House criticized the construction of the bridge, saying that the Canadian side owns both parts of it and allegedly built the facility with almost no American materials.
According to Trump, former President Obama “thoughtlessly made an exception for them so that they could circumvent the Buy American Act (1933, ed.) and did not use any American products, including steel.”
“Now the Canadian government expects me, as president of the United States, to allow them to simply take advantage of America!” he said, adding that the US would get “absolutely nothing” out of it.
The president also mentioned restrictions on American alcohol in Ontario and high Canadian tariffs on dairy products from the US.
“I will not allow this bridge to open until the United States is fully compensated for everything we have given them. And, importantly, until Canada treats the United States with the fairness and respect we deserve,” he stressed.
The American leader said that negotiations should begin “immediately.”
“Considering everything we have given them, we should own at least half of this asset,” Trump said.
The Gordie Howe International Bridge across the Detroit River is intended to connect the United States and Canada, creating a new direct link for cars (including trucks), pedestrians, and cyclists. Work on the bridge began in 2018, and it is scheduled to open in early 2026. The project, which is being implemented as part of a collaboration between the US and Canada, is managed by the Canadian state-owned company Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority and private partners.