Backing Off French Issue Could Restart U.S. Trade Talks, Canadian Official Says
New York Times
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New York Times
Original Source
Canada's trade minister suggested that a U.S. trade official's pledge to abandon challenges to Canadian French-language laws could open the door to renewed trade negotiations. The talks had collapsed last week after the Trump administration imposed severe tariffs and Canada retaliated with its own countermeasures.
Backing Off French Issue Could Restart U.S. Trade Talks, Canadian Official Says - The New York Times
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Backing Off French Issue Could Restart U.S. Trade Talks, Canadian Official Says
The minister in charge of trade with the United States was responding to comments by Jamieson Greer, the U.S. trade representative, to a Canadian broadcaster.
Listen · 2:57 min
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!A person in a dark suit and red patterned tie, with a slight frown. A blurred person in a blue tie is in the foreground, speaking.
*Dominic LeBlanc, Canada’s minister responsible for trade with the United States, center, with Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada.
Credit...
Chris Tanouye/Reuters*
By
Ian Austen
Reporting from Ottawa
Aug. 27, 2026
Updated 12:43 p.m. ET
Canada’s minister responsible for trade with the United States said on Thursday that a pledge from a Trump administration official to not challenge Canadian laws around French language and Canadian culture could provide an opening to renew negotiations.
Trade talks between the United States and Canada, its second-largest trading partner, collapsed late last week into a battle that Prime Minister Mark Carney compared to war, as the Trump administration announced severe tariffs and Canada retaliated with its own.
Among the points that officials clashed over were Canadian rules protecting the use of French in daily life and promoting French-language movies and shows. The minister, Dominic LeBlanc, alluded to those rules on Thursday in a comment about “discoverability,” referring to Canadian laws that require online streaming services to make it easier for users to “discover” shows and movies in French.
“Canada welcomes that the U.S. is now withdrawing its positions on discoverability and labeling and is confirming that measures to promote French language and Canadian culture will not be subject to future U.S. trade actions,” Mr. LeBlanc said in a social media post. “We look forward to further constructive U.S. clarifications on their other positions, which would create the possibility of a mutually beneficial trade agreement that respects Canadian sovereignty.”
His statement was a shift from the sometimes acrimonious exchange of words across the border in recent days.
In a strongly worded speech on Saturday, Mr. Carney said that Canada had been “attacked” by the Trump administration’s trade moves and that the two countries were now “at war.” Among the reasons for his decision to call off the talks, Mr. Carney cited American attempts to negotiate away Canadian users’ ability to find shows and movies in French, one of Canada’s two official languages, and other laws requiring the use of both languages equally.
Mr. LeBlanc appeared to be reacting to comments made by Jamieson Greer, the United States Trade Representative, in an interview with CBC News, the Canadian public broadcaster, that aired on Wednesday.
In the interview, Mr. Greer said that laws and regulations to make it easier to find French content on streaming services had been “highlighted” by the American side, but he said that they were not a make-or-break issue.
“President Trump, myself and the U.S. government recognizes the importance and sensitivity of the French language in Canada,” Mr. Greer told the broadcaster.
He added: “There is no way we would let a good deal go by for something like this. This is not something where we push hard or condition or red line.”
Ian Austen
reports on Canada for The Times. A Windsor, Ontario, native now based in Ottawa, he has reported on the country for two decades. He can be reached at [email protected].
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Skip to contentSkip to site index
Canada
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Thursday, August 27, 2026
Today’s Paper
* Home
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+ Canada
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+ 中文
U.S. Tariffs and
Trade
* U.S.-Canada Trade War
* Trade Deficit Dips
* U.S. Brands Return to China
* Tariffs for Over 80 Countries
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Backing Off French Issue Could Restart U.S. Trade Talks, Canadian Official Says
The minister in charge of trade with the United States was responding to comments by Jamieson Greer, the U.S. trade representative, to a Canadian broadcaster.
Listen · 2:57 min
*
*
*
*
!A person in a dark suit and red patterned tie, with a slight frown. A blurred person in a blue tie is in the foreground, speaking.
*Dominic LeBlanc, Canada’s minister responsible for trade with the United States, center, with Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada.
Credit...
Chris Tanouye/Reuters*
By
Ian Austen
Reporting from Ottawa
Aug. 27, 2026
Updated 12:43 p.m. ET
Canada’s minister responsible for trade with the United States said on Thursday that a pledge from a Trump administration official to not challenge Canadian laws around French language and Canadian culture could provide an opening to renew negotiations.
Trade talks between the United States and Canada, its second-largest trading partner, collapsed late last week into a battle that Prime Minister Mark Carney compared to war, as the Trump administration announced severe tariffs and Canada retaliated with its own.
Among the points that officials clashed over were Canadian rules protecting the use of French in daily life and promoting French-language movies and shows. The minister, Dominic LeBlanc, alluded to those rules on Thursday in a comment about “discoverability,” referring to Canadian laws that require online streaming services to make it easier for users to “discover” shows and movies in French.
“Canada welcomes that the U.S. is now withdrawing its positions on discoverability and labeling and is confirming that measures to promote French language and Canadian culture will not be subject to future U.S. trade actions,” Mr. LeBlanc said in a social media post. “We look forward to further constructive U.S. clarifications on their other positions, which would create the possibility of a mutually beneficial trade agreement that respects Canadian sovereignty.”
His statement was a shift from the sometimes acrimonious exchange of words across the border in recent days.
In a strongly worded speech on Saturday, Mr. Carney said that Canada had been “attacked” by the Trump administration’s trade moves and that the two countries were now “at war.” Among the reasons for his decision to call off the talks, Mr. Carney cited American attempts to negotiate away Canadian users’ ability to find shows and movies in French, one of Canada’s two official languages, and other laws requiring the use of both languages equally.
Mr. LeBlanc appeared to be reacting to comments made by Jamieson Greer, the United States Trade Representative, in an interview with CBC News, the Canadian public broadcaster, that aired on Wednesday.
In the interview, Mr. Greer said that laws and regulations to make it easier to find French content on streaming services had been “highlighted” by the American side, but he said that they were not a make-or-break issue.
“President Trump, myself and the U.S. government recognizes the importance and sensitivity of the French language in Canada,” Mr. Greer told the broadcaster.
He added: “There is no way we would let a good deal go by for something like this. This is not something where we push hard or condition or red line.”
Ian Austen
reports on Canada for The Times. A Windsor, Ontario, native now based in Ottawa, he has reported on the country for two decades. He can be reached at [email protected].
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