canadian officials no longer attending gordie howe bridge opening ceremony
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canadian officials are reportedly pulling out of attending the opening of the gordie howe international bridge with u.s. officials on friday following new tariff threats by president donald trump.
in an emailed statement obtained by the cbc, a spokesperson for infrastructure minister gregor robertson said, “in light of trade action threatened by the united states earlier this week, it would be inappropriate to proceed with a celebratory event between the two countries.”
however, the statement reportedly said the federal government was still “committed” to the bridge opening, which is scheduled for monday.
dispute over bridge revenues
the long-awaited opening of the $6.4-billion bridge linking windsor to detroit was postponed several times with the most recent delay pushing back its opening by a month after trump claimed the original revenue-sharing deal signed between the two countries was “unacceptable.”
earlier this month, trump confirmed the july 27 opening date in a truth social post, stating he negotiated a “much better deal for america.”
though the terms of the new deal haven’t been fully revealed, canada had paid for the construction of the 2.5-km bridge.
prime minister mark carney said canada would be paid back the full construction costs and that any revenue sharing from bridge tolls would happen after canada recouped the amount it had spent with toll revenues split between the two countries for the first 15 years.
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which canadian officials were expected to attend?
over the weekend, u.s. ambassador pete hoekstra said he would attend friday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony along with internal trade minister dominic leblanc and canada’s ambassador to the u.s. mark wiseman.
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windsor mayor drew dilkens, who was invited to the event, told the windsor star on tuesday night that the subdued opening doesn’t diminish the bridge’s impact on the canadian economy.
“gordie howe was known for kindness, respect and his tenacity to win,” dilkens said. “even though the celebration of the gordie howe bridge opening will not be as robust as any of us would have hoped, i remain committed to celebrating the long-term positive impact this new border crossing will have on our regional economy for generations to come.
“canadians will continue to follow the example shown by gordie howe and we hope everyone would aspire to demonstrate the ideals he represents.”
on monday, the trump administration said it was imposing a new 50% tariff on goods from canada in response to what it said was canada’s discriminatory treatment of imports of alcohol, vehicles and dairy from the u.s..
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