For Canada and the United States, "This relationship is gone" after the bitter Nafta talks

"The president insulted our country, our prime minister and even our chief negotiator," said Frank McKenna, former premier of New Brunswick and Canada's former ambassador to the United States.

"Not only did he use foul language, he threatened our economic well-being," McKenna said. "And he seemed to do it with joy. People will not forget it. I think this is now deeply embedded in our psyche – the way we have been treated by this president. "

The months of negotiations over the North American Free Trade Agreement have caused more and more shocks to Canadians, who have long considered themselves the beloved little brother – albeit a little ignored – the neighbor of their superpower.

Of course, many Americans could not locate the capital of Canada, Ottawa, on the map or name the country's prime minister – a successful TV routine was based on this benign ignorance – but this was widely accepted as evidence of a relationship so strong that it could be taken for granted.

Although Canada has only 36 million inhabitants, Canada is the largest source of international travelers to the United States, its closest military ally and the largest importer of US goods.

Many Canadians, who praised their relationship with the Americans as the most successful partnership in the world, believe that the special connection has disappeared – or at least has collapsed.

"We think we understand the United States or think we did," said Janice Stein, founding director of the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto. "This relationship is gone."

Bill Anderson, director of the Transboundary Institute at the University of Windsor, a research organization on the other side of the Detroit River, said there was hope that relations could be repaired eventually.

"There is some kind of disappointment, but most people expect things to improve," he said. "Here at the border, the link is more personal than political."

Erosion began in May, when Trump announced the extension of tariffs on steel and aluminum in Canada, impeding the trade deal by saying that imported metals were threatening national security by degrading trade. industrial base of the United States. Canada is the largest exporter of steel and aluminum in the United States.

"It's impossible to explain to Americans how insulted Canadians are to this," said Stein. "How, by an effort of imagination, could we be a threat to the security of the United States?"

The next day, the president's main business and economic advisers multiplied. Peter Navarro said that there was "a special place in hell" for Mr. Trudeau and Larry Kudlow said he "stabbed us in the back". Mr. Navarro then excused himself.

Canadian historians say that there is a rich history of icy relations between US presidents and Canadian prime ministers.

The most famous manifestation of anger, said Robert Bothwell, a professor of Canadian history at the University of Toronto, was launched after Canadian Lester B. Pearson, Liberal and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, called for the suspension of the bombing in Vietnam by the United States. United, in a speech in Philadelphia. The next day, he visited President Lyndon B. Johnson at Camp David.

Mr. Johnson was so enraged that he raised Mr. Pearson by the back of his jacket, shouting, "You pissed on my carpet.

But that was not made public at the time. And that's certainly not what the president himself has announced.

"There was a disagreement, yes, but never such public abuse," said Professor Bothwell. "Even Woodrow Wilson would have thought it was just ruthless. There is really no precedent. "

Throughout the negotiations, Trump put Canadian dairy farmers at the center of his attacks on Twitter. He mocked at Canada's military commitment to the American wars, replying at one point: "Have not you burned the White House?"

Then, in August, he announced an agreement with Mexico on Nafta and suggested that Canada may no longer be included. He threatened to hit Canadian auto exports with a 25% hike if he did not negotiate fairly.

In the days leading up to the signing of the agreement, Mr. Trump announced that he had voluntarily made fun of Mr. Trudeau by refusing to meet with him at the United Nations and declared that he was not allowed to vote. did not like the Canadian Trade Representative – probably Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland – a lot. (Mr. Trudeau's office stated that no meeting request had ever been made.)

"This type of language was extremely offensive," said Professor Anderson. "It will stay with people."

Only 39% of Canadians surveyed said they had a positive view of the United States – the lowest number since Pew's 2002 survey.

For many Canadians, the worst was that Trump's feelings were supported by many Americans. Ms. Stein spoke about the latest Gallup poll, according to which Trump's approval rate was 42%.

"This is really a profound shock for Canadians," she said. "We must now use the time that the agreement gives us – 16 years – to adapt, to diversify our trade beyond the United States."

"We need to put more effort and resources into the rest of the G7 – regardless of what the US is saying – in Germany, France and Japan," Stein said. "It would be very irresponsible not to do it after that."

In his own press conference after the announcement of the new agreement, Mr. Trudeau alluded to the same idea.

He pointed out that thanks to their many agreements, Canadians are now negotiating with 1.5 billion consumers around the world. "From Singapore to Kiev, from the most northerly point of the Americas to the southernmost," he said, "we are part of a global rules-based free trade network that benefits consumers alike. only to the workers. "

Pressed by his relations with the President, Mr. Trudeau was a diplomat. He said more, saying little.

"Relations between the United States and Canadians are much deeper than those between two people who hold the positions of prime minister and president," said Trudeau.