Canada minister says he welcomes US clarification on French language requirements

Canada's minister responsible for U.S. trade said on ​Thursday that he welcomed fresh comments from ​the U.S.indicating that French language requirements were ‌not a ​deal breaker in trade talks that collapsed between the neighboring countries.

"Canada welcomes that the U.S. is now withdrawing its positions on discoverability and labelling and is ‌confirming that measures to promote French language and Canadian culture will not be subject to future U.S. trade actions," Dominic LeBlanc said in a post on X. "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." The comments appeared to be ‌an effort to lower tensions after the Trump administration imposed new 50% tariffs on $20 billion of Canadian imports on Saturday after negotiations broke down. Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Saturday that talks to avert new U.S. tariffs had faltered after U.S. negotiators proposed last-minute ⁠changes, including ​some that put Canada's French-language ⁠rules at risk.

English and French are the official languages of Canada. The United States has objected to Canadian and Quebec measures affecting online ⁠streaming services, including proposed requirements aimed at promoting French-language content.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative had listed the requirements ​as a trade barrier in its 2026 National Trade Estimate report. But U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said ⁠on Wednesday that the issue had not been a deal breaker.

"The United States, we always have questions about this. This is something we ⁠talked ​about, but we showed a lot of flexibility. And our view is there is no way, you know, we would let a good deal go by for something like this ... It's like the farthest thing ⁠from a red line," Greer said in an interview with CBC News on Wednesday. He also said that for ⁠now the Trump administration ⁠has no open channel of communication with the Canadian government.

Canada on Tuesday announced retaliatory tariffs on about $20 billion worth of U.S. imports. They take effect on September ‌8.