By Ginika Igboke
Prime Minister Mark Carney says he has spoken with U.S. President Donald Trump about his threat to block the opening of the new Gordie Howe International Bridge linking Ontario and Michigan, expressing confidence that the issue will be settled.
“The situation will be resolved,” Carney told reporters in French in the House of Commons on Feb. 10.
Trump wrote on Truth Social on Feb. 9 that he would not allow the bridge to open unless the United States is compensated, arguing that the agreement signed under former President Barack Obama did not benefit the United States. He claimed Canada would own both sides of the bridge and that it was not being built with U.S. steel.
“We will start negotiations, IMMEDIATELY. With all that we have given them, we should own, perhaps, at least one half of this asset. The revenues generated because of the U.S. Market will be astronomical,” Trump wrote.
Carney said he told Trump during a recent phone call that Canada contributed $4 billion toward construction and that ownership is shared between the Government of Canada and the state of Michigan. He added that while Canadian steel and workers are involved in the project, American materials and labor are also being used.
“This is a great example of cooperation between our countries. I look forward to it opening,” Carney said, noting the bridge is expected to boost trade and tourism between the two nations.
According to Carney, Trump also suggested that U.S. Ambassador Pete Hoekstra, a Michigan native, help ease discussions surrounding the project. Their conversation also touched on the upcoming review of the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA).
Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon said on Feb. 10 that the bridge was constructed using both Canadian and American workers and materials.
“I don’t know what motivated [Trump’s] statement yesterday, but what I do know is that bridge will stand the test of time,” MacKinnon said.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told Fox Business on Feb. 10 that Trump has a “valid concern” about the bridge’s construction and raised questions about how toll revenues will be handled.
“So there’s going to be a negotiation on that front into how that bridge should be treated if it’s going to be going into the U.S.,” Greer said. “The United States needs to make sure that it has its fair share of any proceeds from that bridge and the economic activity that it generates.”
Under the current agreement, toll revenue will first reimburse the Canadian government for its construction investment. After those costs are recovered, half of the toll proceeds will be shared with the state of Michigan.
The $6.4 billion project is funded by Canada’s federal government and owned by the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority, a Canadian Crown corporation. In a Feb. 6 update, the authority said major construction has been completed and the bridge is now in the testing and commissioning phase.
Once operational, the Gordie Howe International Bridge will become the second span connecting Windsor, Ontario, and Detroit, Michigan, alongside the Ambassador Bridge. The project was initially agreed upon in 2012 by former Prime Minister Stephen Harper and former Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, and received U.S. approval in 2013 under the Obama administration.
During his first term, Trump expressed support for the project. In a 2017 joint statement with former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the two leaders said they “look forward to the expeditious completion of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, which will serve as a vital economic link between our two countries.”
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