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When the Rules No Longer Rule: The EU and Canada’s Responses to Trump’s Tariffs

The erosion of the WTO-based multilateral trading system, accelerated by Trump’s tariff offensive since 2025, has challenged the foundations of the EU and Canada’s economic models, centred on openness and rules. While Canada’s deeper integration with the US and Europe’s broader dependencies shape different vulnerabilities, both have pursued negotiated settlements and accelerated diversification through new trade agreements. China’s state-led export model adds a further complication: it is both a growing competitive threat and a source of technology and input dependencies that diversification cannot easily unwind. Given persistent US unreliability, China’s more assertive stance and WTO paralysis, the EU and Canada should anchor a plurilateral coalition – built on existing partnerships and open to eventual WTO reintegration – as the most credible foundation for a durable, rules-based trading order.