Canadian foreign minister responds to Trump advisers: Attacks on Trudeau aren’t ‘appropriate or useful’

Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland responded to attacks on Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made by President Trump’s advisers on Sunday, saying that Canada doesn’t find such attacks “appropriate or useful.”

“Canada does not believe that ad hominem attacks are a particularly appropriate or useful way to conduct our relations with other countries,” Freeland said at a press conference Sunday.

Freeland also said Canada is “very measured” and that the country’s officials “use fact-based arguments.”

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Freeland was responding to a question asked about a direct attack on Trudeau made by White House National Trade Council Director Peter Navarro earlier Sunday.

“There’s a special place in hell for any foreign leader that engages in bad faith diplomacy with President Donald J. Trump and then tries to stab him in the back on the way out the door,” Navarro said on “Fox News Sunday.”

White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow also slammed Trudeau for his criticism of new steel and aluminum import tariffs imposed by the U.S. earlier this month, dubbing the prime minister’s statements “a betrayal.”

“You just don’t behave that way, OK? It is a betrayal, OK? He is essentially double-crossing — not just double crossing President Trump, but the other members of the G-7, who were working together and pulling together this communique,” Kudlow said.

“President Trump played that process in good faith,” he said. “So, I ask you, he gets up in the airplane and leaves. And then Trudeau starts blasting him in a domestic news conference? I’m sorry. It is a betrayal. That is a double-cross.”

Trump had blasted Trudeau in a pair of tweets Saturday after departing the Group of Seven (G-7) summit early, calling him “very dishonest & weak.”

Trudeau had held a press conference earlier in the day, saying that Canada wouldn’t be “pushed around” over the tariffs.

Based on Justin’s false statements at his news conference, and the fact that Canada is charging massive Tariffs to our U.S. farmers, workers and companies, I have instructed our U.S. Reps not to endorse the Communique as we look at Tariffs on automobiles flooding the U.S. Market!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 9, 2018

PM Justin Trudeau of Canada acted so meek and mild during our @G7 meetings only to give a news conference after I left saying that, “US Tariffs were kind of insulting” and he “will not be pushed around.” Very dishonest & weak. Our Tariffs are in response to his of 270% on dairy!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 9, 2018