How Should Canada Handle America's Erratic Foreign Policy? | The Rundown

President Donald Trump just announced he'll introduce a 10 per cent tariff on eight allies who are opposed to U.S. control of Greenland. He threatened that the tariff would rise to 25 per cent if there's no action by June. 

In response, Prime Minister Mark Carney said: "Decisions about the future of Greenland are for Greenland and Denmark to decide." So what role can and should Canada play here? How can we protect our historical alliances when our allies are so dramatically at odds? And has Carney's recent trip to China to reset ties taken on even more significance?

Host Jeyan Jeganthan speaks with: Kerry Buck, former Canadian ambassador to NATO; Globe and Mail columnist Andrew Coyne; and Seva Gunitsky, an associate professor of political science at the University of Toronto.

0:00 Intro
0:54 Panel Introduction & Initial Reactions
1:40 European Troop Deployment & Symbolic Force
2:09 Why Canada Hasn’t Sent Troops
3:31 Should Canada Send Troops?
4:38 Canada’s Tightrope: Responding Without Provoking
5:23 Canada’s Strategy: De-escalation & Arctic Presence
6:15 Diplomacy vs Trump’s Unpredictability
7:04 After Venezuela: Will the U.S. Intervene Elsewhere?
8:06 Legal & Military Risks of U.S. Actions
10:06 How Vulnerable Is Canada’s Arctic?
11:43 Balancing NATO Commitments and U.S. Relations
13:28 Trade Diversification & China Strategy
16:53 China: Benefits and Risks for Canada
17:54 Rating Canada’s Foreign Policy

About The Rundown:

The Rundown is your nightly half-hour deep dive into just one headline. With host Jeyan Jeganathan, we’ll cover everything from housing and health care to climate and AI. We’ll break down why each topic matters, who’s living it, and what’s being done to make things better – starting right here in Ontario. Slow down. Tune in. Make sense of the moment. And tell us what you think.