Canada welcomes US shift on French language discoverability in trade talks

Canada's top trade negotiator with the United States, Dominic LeBlanc, notes he "welcomes" a shift in the US position on "discoverability", "labelling" and "measures to promote French language and Canadian culture" not being subject to US tariffs.

Key points

• Canada confirmed retaliatory tariffs on roughly $20bn of US goods ranging from 15 to 50 percent that will go into effect on September 8.
• Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick echoed those comments at a news conference on Thursday outside the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.
• On Saturday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney remarked US office-holders created "threats to the French language" as well as threats to the culture of Canada and Quebec specifically.
• The comments come on the heels of tit-for-tat tariffs between Washington and Ottawa.
• LeBlanc praised the move in a post on Thursday on X and continued that Canada is looking forward to further constructive U.S.

LeBlanc praised the move in a post on Thursday on X and continued that Canada is looking "forward to further constructive U.S. Clarifications on their other positions, which would create the possibility of a mutually beneficial trade agreement".

Al Jazeera reached out to the White House for comment, but it pointed to an interview with US Trade Representative Jamison Greer on the Canadian broadcaster CBC in which Greer remarked French language discoverability on streaming services "is not something where we push hard or condition or red-line".

"Do I care regarding how the Quebecois speak? I mean, what could matter less to America? We don't care. So the fact is we never brought those words up. This is manufactured, and that's why the president put out a saying it was a complete lie, right? It was manufactured, " Lutnick remarked to journalists.

Notably, the comments come on the heels of tit-for-tat tariffs between Washington and Ottawa.

Canada confirmed retaliatory tariffs on roughly $20bn of US goods ranging from 15 to 50 percent that will go into effect on September 8. Those levies were in response to 50 percent tariffs confirmed by Washington on Canadian goods as negotiations collapsed over the weekend.

US President Donald Trump ramped up his rhetoric against Canada in recent days, including signing an executive order on Thursday to rename Lake Ontario, the easternmost of the five Great Lakes. It borders Ontario, to Lake America.

Canada's retaliatory tariffs are to hit hundreds of consumer products, including ice skates, dishwashers and construction materials. Nevertheless, on Wednesday, Ottawa scaled back some tariffs, including those on fish and other seafood products.

"Based on feedback, we have made select adjustments to protect against economic harms, including removing seafood and fish products from our list of counter-tariffs, " Canada's Department of Finance remarked in a post on X.

"We are continually working with Canadian industries to assess the effectiveness of these measures, with a primary focus on industries that have been targeted by US tariffs."

In short, canada welcomes US shift on French language discoverability in trade talks is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.