Ontario Premier Doug Ford said on Friday that he will never again rely on any world leader after US President Donald Trump ordered an American company to stop sending N95 masks to Canada.
Ford told reporters during a daily coronavirus briefing on Friday that once the province is up and running again, he will revamp Ontario’s manufacturing sector.
“I can’t stress how disappointed I am with President Trump for making this decision. I’m not going to rely on President Trump, or any prime minister or president of any other country again,” said Ford.
“Our manufacturing, we’re gearing up and once they start, we’re never going to stop them. As long as I’m premier, I will never, ever let this happen again to the province.”
The Trump administration asked the company 3M to stop sending N95 respirator masks to Canada.
Using the Defence Production Act, Trump ordered the company to speed up production of the masks for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) use.
“The administration also requested that 3M cease exporting respirators that we currently manufacture in the United States to the Canadian and Latin American markets,” said a statement by the company.
“There are, however, significant humanitarian implications of ceasing respirator supplies to health-care workers in Canada and Latin America, where we are a critical supplier of respirators.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that he is currently in contact with the US and stressed the need to maintain the flow of goods across the border.
“We are discussing very closely with the United States the importance of keeping the flow of essential goods and services across our border to help both countries. I am confident that the close and deep relationship between Canada and the U.S. will hold strong and we will not have to see interruptions in the supply chain in either direction,” said Trudeau on the matter.
