'Distrust' of US pushes Canada to others

Tensions between Canada and the US, since the Donald Trump administration came to power, are pushing the former to explore closer ties with other partners and diversify its trade relations, experts say.

"Canada is never top of the mind for American federal politicians," said Ron Stagg, a professor of history at Toronto Metropolitan University.

"But now the Trump government is very much ignoring Canadian leadership, except when threatened with tariffs, or when there is a threat to impose a surcharge on electricity sent to US northern states," Stagg told China Daily.