OTTAWA: Canada's Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly has issued a stern warning to the United States, cautioning that American consumers will bear the brunt of a "Trump tariff tax" if President-elect Donal

Canada’s foreign minister is warning Americans they will be paying a “Trump tariff tax” if President-elect Donald Trump follows through with a threat of imposing a 25% tariff on all Canadian goods.

Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly on Friday announced she would not run in the race to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, saying she wanted to focus on the threat posed by potential U.S. tariffs.

Many U.S. lawmakers are unaware of the risk Donald Trump ’s threatened tariffs pose to Canada, to the American economy and to two-way trade, Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says after a visit to Washington aimed at stopping a trade war.

Trudeau has appeared on multiple U.S. news networks to warn Canada’s neighbors that their pocketbooks are at risk of becoming collateral damage in Trump’s trade war. “Anything an American president does to hurt the Canadian economy will also hurt American consumers and American workers and American growth,” he told CNN’s Jake Tapper last week.

Canadian PM Justin Trudeau said that if a “worst-case scenario” trade war ensues between the US and Canada, Ottawa won’t hesitate to take strong retaliatory measures.

Canada is prepared to retaliate if President-elect Donald Trump imposes tariffs on the country. Canada’s Foreign Minister, Mélanie Joly, says if Trump does this, “he’s starting a trade war.”