Earlier this year, as US President Donald Trump assumed office, he began a sustained campaign of goading Canada into a trade war. He kept referring to Canada as the 51st state of America, referred to then Prime Minister Trudeau as a governor, and right up to Canadian elections in the end of May referred to the border between Canada and the US as artificial. 

While his rhetoric argues for the annexation of Canada, his outlook is mostly economic. He claimed that existing trade deals make the US subsidize Canada and criticized tariffs in Canada’s protected sectors like dairy. He has since announced, then delayed, then rescinded and then applied a set of tariffs on Canada, with the most notable being a 25% tariff on auto imports and a 50% tariff on Canadian steel and aluminum, with a few exceptions. Canadians have responded with a 25% tariff as well.   

His trade talk was heard loud and clear in Canada, and his comments appear to have revived the Liberal Party, which was heading into a catastrophic election but made it out victorious. But what can be understood about America’s economy and its place in the world from these theatrics? And what can we, as an Ummah, learn from it?

Why the Tariffs?

It is hard to get a coherent rationale for tariffs from the Trump administration, especially with a nearly trillion-dollar trade partner as is Canada. Trump has cited loose immigration laws, Canadian protectionism, a lack of spending on NATO, and fentanyl smuggling all as reasons for this trade war. None of these reasons stand up to scrutiny or questioning, even in the American press. 

Trump has also argued that he is trying to boost American manufacturing. It should be clear that tariffs alone cannot revive a manufacturing base in the US. Instead, it would need industrial policy and domestic investments that are nowhere in sight. As it stands, it would still be cheaper for companies to import from overseas, pay the tariffs, and pass on the price to the American customer.

The one theme that Trump aligned speakers have consistently pressed upon is that of the US having a sphere of influence that is desirable for a country like Canada, and that there should be some kind of premium that Canada should be willing to pay in order to remain in this sphere of influence. This could be either in the form of tariffs, or through concessions in Canada’s sovereignty or system of protective tariffs.

This ties into the key concern that the United States has: its loss of total economic domination over the world. Especially with the rise of China, which is busy creating its own international alliances, trade deals, resource exploitation agreements and diplomatic efforts.

The tariffs must be understood in this context. Countries like Canada are increasingly aligning with China, whose massive economy, efficient manufacturing, and abundant capital is controlling the real estate, academia, resource extraction and technology development in these countries. The US will impose tariffs to draw countries into trade negotiations and will pressure them to cut out their increasing alignment with China and remain loyal to the US’s sphere of influence. 

It is notable that the US used to conduct these kinds of negotiations on the strength of its superior technology, financial resources and diplomatic prowess, but is now having to rely on extortion and bullying tactics to achieve the same result.

Cruelty as an Economic Policy

Many have focused on how chaotic and ridiculous Trump’s implementation of his tariffs have been. It is clear that the current administration’s efforts are largely viewed as counterproductive to their goals and may have encouraged some countries to deepen their relationship with China as opposed to continuing blindly orbiting the US. But while it is entertaining to focus on the contradictions and missteps of Trump and his team, we cannot forget the cruelty of this policy. At the core of this incompetent implementation is a coherent idea, which is that America should be able to bully and extort its allies, in order to dictate their foreign and trade policy.

To do this with distant lands is one thing, but to do it with Canada! This country has aligned itself entirely with the United States. The US is Canada’s largest trading partner. Canadians have modified their technological development to appease the Americans, like when it cut out Huawei from its 5G development plans and even went as far as arresting its CFO. It has built its military technology to be interoperable with the US, due to NATO requirements. Its social, economic and cultural dependence on the US cannot be overstated. For the US to then turn around and demand further loyalty from the Canadians, mock it by calling it a 51st state, and refer to its elected head of state as a governor is more than a slight, its orchestrated humiliation. 

And this is nothing compared to the actual economic ramification of the tariffs. At a time of skyrocketing inflation in both countries, America has imposed a devastating upward pressure on Canadian retail prices by initiating this trade war. This is separate from the increased scrutiny at the US-Canadian border, and the arbitrary detention of Canadians trying to enter the US on a work visa. To humiliate and impoverish an ally who is largely compliant with you is a uniquely American cruelty. 

A Warning to the Muslim Lands

As we watch this trade war unfold, Muslims in Canada will also be vulnerable to rising prices and arbitrary changes. As we work diligently to provide for our families and make ends meet, let us also reflect on a larger message from this debacle.

Firstly, it is crucial for us to recognize that the United States does not have allies, it has interests. And it will hurt any friendship and impose any attack that furthers its interests. This message should be broadcast loud and clear to the Muslim lands, where leaders will still tout American approval as some kind of lasting advantage. You can get Trump to say nice things about you by bribing him with gifts and promises of investments and may even get him to remove sanctions of you as in the case of Syria, but this is a temporary reprieve. When it suits the interests of the Americans, they will betray you, support your enemies, and insult you while they are at it. If they can do it to their loyal neighbor Canada, what will they do to a Muslim ruler?

Secondly, the naked greed and cruelty of the Trump administration is the crack that has revealed the back door dealings of the Americans for decades. US foreign policy is not based on any set of values that it is promoting, or loyalty to any kind of cause outside its own base self-interests. In other words, Capitalists do not have the Islamic concept of brotherhood – not even between Americans and Canadians.  After all, the US is a capitalist nation, and Capitalism believes that the powerful should pursue their self-interests without any consideration for the weak and downtrodden. The real threat to the US is anything that weakens their ability to dominate the global flow of goods and resources. 

This should give us pause as an Ummah. How many of the world’s resources, from agriculture to energy, to human capital originate from the Ummah? How many global trade routes go through our lands? As a people, do we not then have the ability to leverage these resources to forge a new path for the Ummah. A path that does not involve being subject to the endless bombing campaigns of American supplied bombs, that shred apart our homes and families. A path that does not invoke groveling and bribing the corrupt American elite for wealth and influence. A path that brings dignity and self-determination to the Ummah, so it can become a beacon of light and hope to the world.

This path is only possible if we as an Ummah reject the global Capitalist system, and all the institutions that prop it up. Rather, we must centre ourselves around the revealed guidance of Allah (swt), the Quran and the example of His Messenger (saw). It is in this guidance that we will find a revealed system guiding not just our personal lives, but our social, political and economic issues as well. This is the only path to liberate ourselves from the cruel domination of the greedy and brutal Capitalist elite.

Moreover, it is incumbent on the Ummah to set a new leadership for humanity; rooted in the Quran and Sunnah. This is the same leadership that was brought to us by RasulAllah (saw), the sahabah, and the Khulafah that came after them. It is this leadership that forged the brotherhood between Arabs, Turks, Bosnians, and so on. It is the only source of light that humanity has access to, especially in these turbulent times that we find ourselves in.

May Allah (swt) make us part of the effort to revive Islam in the Muslims lands, and to implement the socio-political system of Islam, via the return of the Khilafah state. (Ameen)

“By your Lord, they will not be true believers until they let you decide between them in all matters of dispute, and find no resistance in their souls to your decisions, accepting them totally-” [TMQ 4:65]