‘Closest target’: Why is Donald Trump so focused on Canada?

In his first speech as Canada’s prime minister-designate, Mark Carney delivered what observers have described as a stunning statement.

“I know that these are dark days,” Carney told a room full of supporters on Sunday after he won the race to lead the governing Liberal Party. “Dark days brought on by a country we can no longer trust.”The country in question? An ally with which Canada shares the world’s longest undefended land border and, until recently, seemingly unshakeable ties: the United States.

“That is jaw-dropping in the broader context,” Jon Parmenter, a history professor at Cornell University in New York state, said of Carney’s remark.

Experts say the idea that the US can no longer be trusted reflects a sentiment that has been spreading rapidly across Canada in recent months, however.

In that time, Canadians have watched with a mixture of shock, confusion and anger as US President Donald Trump repeatedly took aim at their country — both as part of his global trade policies and his expansionist ambitions.Trump has imposed steep tariffs on Canadian goods and threatened more. He regularly calls for the annexation of Canada, and he has made unfounded and disparaging claims about outgoing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Canadian electoral system.

“The damage to the relationship is substantial,” Parmenter told Al Jazeera. “It’s going to be long-lasting.”

Yet, as Trump’s attacks against his country’s northern neighbour continue unabated, many observers are now asking: Why?

Why is the president targeting a country that had widely been viewed as one of the US’s most reliable partners? Why does Trump seem so fixated on Canada?