U.S. President Donald Trump addresses a news conference at the White House in Washington D.C., the United States, on March 13, 2020. (Xinhua/Liu Jie)
OTTAWA, April 8 (Xinhua) -- Canadians are enraged by U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to ban the export of N95 protective masks to Canada:
Here is what they say:
"To say that I'm infuriated by the recent actions of President Trump of the United States is an understatement," said Newfoundland Premier Dwight Ball.
"I cannot believe for a second that in a time of crisis that President Trump would even think about banning key medical supplies to Canada."
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Ontario's conservative Premier Doug Ford also expressed disappointment.
"It's like one of your family members (says), 'OK, you go starve and we'll go feast on the rest of the meal.' I'm just so disappointed right now," Ford said.
"We have a great relationship with the U.S. and they pull these shenanigans? Unacceptable."
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Alberta Premier Jason Kenney, also a conservative, recalled resentments from the start of World War II: "The United States sat out the first two or three years and actually initially refused to even provide supplies to Canada and the United Kingdom that was leading the fight at the time," he said.
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Former Gander Mayor Claude Elliott also said he's disappointed.
"I understand the United States is going through a very dramatic time, especially in New York, and they need a lot of supplies, but we're fighting an enemy that is just not one state, it's the whole world," Elliott said.
"And when we come to those times of tragedy in our life, we need everybody helping each other."
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Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau addresses party members at the Liberal Party campaign headquarters in Montreal, Canada, Oct. 21, 2019. (Photo by Raffi Kirdi/Xinhua)
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Saturday that his government will not take retaliatory measures against the United States.
"We are not looking at retaliatory measures or measures that are punitive. We know that it is in both of our interests to continue to work collaboratively and cooperatively," Trudeau said.
He said that he will speak with U.S. President Trump in the coming days to protect the flow of goods across the border and he is confident they will be able to find a solution.
Healthcare workers acknowledge applause and cheers from people outside the St. Paul's Hospital on World Health Day in Vancouver, Canada, April 6, 2020. (Photo by Liang Sen/Xinhua)
U.S. bans mask export, increases import:
On Friday, Minnesota-based company 3M revealed the Trump administration had ordered them to cease exporting N95 masks to Canada and Latin American countries.
Meanwhile, the company is speeding up the importing of respirators from its overseas operations into the United States.
"For example, earlier this week, we secured approval from China to export to the U.S. 10 million N95 respirators manufactured by 3M in China," the company said.
Masks from China
On Tuesday Canadian Public Services and Procurement Minister Anita Anand said that Canada received 8 million surgical masks from China. Canada expects more deliveries from China in the days to come, Anand said.
York Regional Police Chief Eric Jolliffe (front) poses for a photo during a medical supply donation ceremony outside the York Regional Police Headquarters in Toronto, Canada, April 8, 2020. About 10, 000 face masks and other medical supplies donated by Chinese Police Liaison Officer in Canada were handed over to York Regional Police on Wednesday. (Photo by Zou Zheng/Xinhua)
Canada has sourced more than 230 million surgical masks, and over 60 million have been delivered to date, she said.
In Canada, all provinces and territories except Nunavut have cases of COVID-19.
As of Tuesday afternoon, 17,827 people were confirmed to have the coronavirus in the country, 374 of whom died, according to CTV.■
