Trump Names Kelly Craft Canada Ambassador Ahead of NAFTA Talks
WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump named longtime Republican donor Kelly Craft as his next ambassador to Canada on June 14, according to a White House official.
The appointment in Washington comes ahead of a new round of talks on the North American Free Trade Agreement, which could begin as early as mid-August. Craft, who was first said in March to have accepted the nomination, will still need to be confirmed to take the post as envoy to Canada, the top export market for U.S. goods and its second-largest trading partner after China.
Craft, a Kentucky philanthropist, and husband Joseph Craft III — CEO of coal producer Alliance Resources Partners — donated to Trump and other Republican candidates in 2016. She was a rare example of an establishment Republican who regularly stood by Trump.
The appointment underscores the divide between the two administrations — the wife of a coal executive will be an envoy to Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, an outspoken climate advocate who will introduce a minimum carbon price next year, and who may block the shipment of U.S. coal exports through his country.
The two countries have recently sparred over softwood lumber, aerospace and the Paris Agreement on climate change. Canada, which ships three quarters of its exports south of the border, is seeking to expand trade ties with other countries.
Trudeau has regularly sought to cooperate with Trump though tensions are now emerging. Canada’s environment minister called the U.S. a “footnote” on climate this week. Another minister said this month Canada was “standing up to” the United States by offering funding to workers caught in the middle of a lumber dispute.
In a major speech last week that laid out the Trudeau government’s vision on foreign policy, Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland pivoted away from the U.S. and expressed disappointment at the Trump administration’s abandonment of the Paris pact, while affirming that the existing international order helps constrain powerful nations.
One day later, however, Canada committed to higher defense spending, a key demand Trump has made of U.S. allies.
