President Trump promising action on US-Canada dairy dispute

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The duties were imposed to equalize competitiveness for US lumber companies, and the Commerce Department statement said the tariffs were proportionate to subsidies allegedly offered by the Canadian government. "It was a very amicable call".

"Any two countries are going to have issues that will be irritants to the relationship".

Freeland says she has had "detailed and substantive" discussions with U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in recent days but the two sides are still far apart. For many, including Secretary Ross, this is perceived as a violation of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

"Separately, we will be putting a very big tariff on lumber, timber coming into this country", Trump said, adding, "We don't want to be taken advantage of by other countries".

The Prime Mininister and the President reaffirmed the importance of the mutually-beneficial Canada-US trade relationship.

For the Trump administration, the disputes over lumber and dairy products underscored his push to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement.

US dairy farmers say the new accord has cost Wisconsin and NY companies millions of dollars.

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Last week, headlines in CNN , Al Jazeera , and the Guardian said Hamas now accepts a Palestinian state along the 1967 lines. "We hope the coming phase with Ismail Haniyeh would see an opening to the region", said Fawzi Barhoum , a Hamas spokesman.

Tuesday's move comes, as dozens of Wisconsin dairy farmers continue to search for new processors to purchase their milk.

In a preliminary determination issued in response to a petition by the US lumber lobby, the US Department of Commerce concluded that exporters of softwood lumber from Canada received countervailable subsidies of 3.02 percent to 24.12 percent. According to a statement from the Prime Minister's Office, the prime minister "refuted baseless accusations" on the softwood lumber industry and said he would vigorously defend the sector.

"Lumber prices are high right now, and the reality is the United States needs our lumber", she said. And American dairy exports make up less than 1% of total U.S. exports to Canada, according to Freeland.

"Canada has made business for our dairy farmers in Wisconsin and other border states very hard", he tweeted.

The sentiment was echoed by a former diplomat who leads a Canadian-American business group.

US President Donald Trump and Canada's PM Justin Trudeau. In softwood lumber, the countries have had a once-a-decade cycle of tariffs, trade litigation, and ultimately settlements.

While Barack Obama referred to lumber as a minor irritant, the self-styled America First president is playing up these irritants as examples of his desire to get tough on trade.

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