(../../../../favicon_aje.ico) Canada welcomes US shift on French language discoverability in trade talks | Trade War News | Al Jazeera    (https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2026/8/27/canada-welcomes-us-shift-on-french-language-discoverability-in-trade-talks)                                               (https://www.aljazeera.com/xml/rss/all.xml)  (https://www.aljazeera.com/amp/economy/2026/8/27/canada-welcomes-us-shift-on-french-language-discoverability-in-trade-talks)  (https://www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/reuters_6a90a853-1787865171.jpg?resize=1920%2C1440)  (../../../../wp-content/uploads/2026/08/reuters_6a90a853-1787865171.jpg@resize=770,513&quality=80)     (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org) (https://cdn.cookielaw.org/scripttemplates/otSDKStub.js) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://www.google-analytics.com) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (https://static.chartbeat.com/) (../../../../static/css/vendor~main~d08ff9cb.24bf1742.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~748942c6.6c6e15fe.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~b07b7304.25927f0e.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~6e6dca10.74fd263a.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/css/component~main~5db14389.c7afea12.r2.chunk.css) (../../../../static/media/Roboto-Bold.52bb58c8.woff2) (../../../../static/media/Roboto-Regular.c5bf51b6.woff2)  (../../../../static/css/vendor~aje/containers/home-page~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-blo~5f903362.2e08e417.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/component~aje/containers/home-page~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-~9c0c5d0c.c65718e9.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/component~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~containers/amp-live-blog-container~containers~72501995.3d2cbba2.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/component~components/video-article/videoPageDispatcher~pages/amp-article~pages/article-page~493df0b3.1e546aab.r2.chunk.css)  (../../../../static/css/common~493df0b3.5839b1ed.r2.chunk.css)   Skip links (canada-welcomes-us-shift-on-french-language-discoverability-in-trade-talks@traffic_source=rss.html#main-content-area) Skip to Content  (https://www.aljazeera.com/)          (https://www.aljazeera.com/video/live) play    Live    Sign up  Show navigation menu     Navigation menu (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/) News    Show more news sections  (https://www.aljazeera.com/africa/) Africa   (https://www.aljazeera.com/asia/) Asia   (https://www.aljazeera.com/us-canada/) US & Canada   (https://www.aljazeera.com/latin-america/) Latin America   (https://www.aljazeera.com/europe/) Europe   (https://www.aljazeera.com/asia-pacific/) Asia Pacific      (https://www.aljazeera.com/middle-east/) Middle East   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/explainer/) Explained   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sports) Sport   (https://www.aljazeera.com/opinion/) Opinion   (https://www.aljazeera.com/videos/) Video   More   Show more sections  (https://www.aljazeera.com/features/) Features   (https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/) Economy   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/human-rights/) Human Rights   (https://www.aljazeera.com/climate-crisis) Climate Crisis   (https://www.aljazeera.com/investigations/) Investigations   (https://www.aljazeera.com/interactives/) Interactives   (https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/) In Pictures   (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/science-and-technology/) Science & Technology   (https://www.aljazeera.com/audio/podcasts) Podcasts   (https://www.aljazeera.com/travel) Travel   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sponsored/) Sponsored Content        (https://www.aljazeera.com/video/live) play    Live    Click here to search search     Sign up        Navigation menu caret-left    (https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/donald-trump/) Donald Trump    (https://www.aljazeera.com/video/this-is-america/2026/7/28/trump-netanyahu-and-the-iran-question) Trump, Netanyahu and the Iran question   (https://www.aljazeera.com/video/the-bottom-line/2026/5/24/how-will-iran-war-fallout-impact-upcoming-us-elections) How Iran war fallout may shape US elections   (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/longform/2026/5/19/how-the-shape-of-a-map-can-determine-the-us-midterm-elections) A visual guide to redistricting     caret-right         (https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/) Economy |(https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/trade-war/) Trade War   Canada welcomes US shift on French language discoverability in trade talks US trade officials downplay French language dispute, calling claims fabricated.   Listen   Listen (3 mins)       Save       Share Canada welcomes US shift on French language discoverability in trade talks on social media share-nodes    Share (https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Fveqdms) facebook      (https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Canada%20welcomes%20US%20shift%20on%20French%20language%20discoverability%20in%20trade%20talks&source=sharethiscom&related=sharethis&via=AJEnglish&url=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Fveqdms) x    (whatsapp://send?text=https%3A%2F%2Faje.news%2Fveqdms) whatsapp-stroke    (https://aje.news/veqdms)  copylink          google       Add Al Jazeera on Google  info      (Dominic LeBlanc, the Canadian minister responsible for Canada-U.S. relations, arrives for a meeting with United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer at the USTR's offices in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 20, 2026. REUTERS/Tierney L. Cross)   Dominic LeBlanc, the Canadian minister responsible for Canada-US relations, arrives for a meeting with United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in Washington, D.C., US, August 20, 2026. [Tierney L. Cross/Reuters]   (https://www.aljazeera.com/author/al_jazeera_staff_150119130629458)     By  (https://www.aljazeera.com/author/al_jazeera_staff_150119130629458) Al Jazeera Staff    Published On 27 Aug 2026 27 Aug 2026    Canada’s top trade negotiator with the United States, Dominic LeBlanc, says he “welcomes” a shift in the US position on “discoverability”, “labelling” and “measures to promote French language and Canadian culture” not being subject to US tariffs. LeBlanc praised the move in a post on Thursday on X and added that Canada is looking “forward to further constructive U.S. clarifications on their other positions, which would create the possibility of a mutually beneficial trade agreement”. Recommended Stories list of 4 items list 1 of 4 (https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2026/8/26/us-inflation-remains-sticky-in-july) US inflation holds at 3.7 percent in July, above Fed target  list 2 of 4 (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/8/27/federal-reserve-governor-lisa-cook-denounces-trumps-mortgage-fraud-claims) Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook denounces Trump’s mortgage fraud claims  list 3 of 4 (https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2026/8/27/openai-says-it-detected-malign-activity-months-before-hugging-face-attack) OpenAI says it detected malign activity months before Hugging Face attack  list 4 of 4 (https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2026/8/27/israeli-settlers-targeting-palestinian-factories-to-force-workers-off-land) Israeli settlers targeting Palestinian factories to force workers off land   end of list  Al Jazeera reached out to the White House for comment, but it pointed to an interview with US Trade Representative Jamison Greer on the Canadian broadcaster CBC in which Greer said French language discoverability on streaming services “is not something where we push hard or condition or red-line”. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick echoed those comments at a news conference on Thursday outside the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. “Do I care about how the Quebecois speak? I mean, what could matter less to America? We don’t care. So the fact is we never brought those words up. This is manufactured, and that’s why the president put out a [post on Truth Social] saying it was a complete lie, right? It was manufactured,” Lutnick told reporters. The comments come on the heels of tit-for-tat tariffs between Washington and Ottawa. Canada (https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2026/8/25/canada-hits-us-with-counter-tariffs-targeting-hundreds-of-products) announced retaliatory tariffs on roughly $20bn of US goods ranging from 15 to 50 percent that will go into effect on September 8. Those levies were in response to 50 percent tariffs announced by Washington on Canadian goods as negotiations collapsed over the weekend. Advertisement    US President Donald Trump ramped up his rhetoric against Canada in recent days, including signing an executive order on Thursday to (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/8/27/us-president-trump-signs-order-renaming-lake-ontario-to-lake) rename Lake Ontario , the easternmost of the five Great Lakes, which borders Ontario, to Lake America. On Saturday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said US officials made “threats to the French language” as well as threats to the culture of Canada and Quebec specifically. Canada’s retaliatory tariffs are to hit hundreds of consumer products, including ice skates, dishwashers and construction materials. However, on Wednesday, Ottawa scaled back some tariffs, including those on fish and other seafood products. “Based on feedback, we have made select adjustments to protect against economic harms, including removing seafood and fish products from our list of counter-tariffs,” Canada’s Department of Finance said in a post on X. “We are continually working with Canadian industries to assess the effectiveness of these measures, with a primary focus on industries that have been targeted by US tariffs.”            aj-logo             aj-logo             aj-logo       Advertisement          About About   Show more  (https://www.aljazeera.com/about-us) About Us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/code-of-ethics/) Code of Ethics   (https://www.aljazeera.com/terms-and-conditions/) Terms and Conditions   (https://www.aljazeera.com/eu-eea-regulatory/) EU/EEA Regulatory Notice   (https://privacy.aljazeera.net/) Privacy Policy   (https://privacy.aljazeera.net/cookie/) Cookie Policy   (https://www.aljazeera.com/) Cookie Preferences    (https://trust.aljazeera.net/accessibility/) Accessibility Statement   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sitemap) Sitemap   (https://careers.aljazeera.net/) Work for us      Connect Connect   Show more  (https://network.aljazeera.net/en/contact?tid=6) Contact Us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/user-accounts-help) User Accounts Help   (https://commercial.aljazeera.net/) Advertise with us   (https://www.aljazeera.com/stay-connected) Stay Connected   (https://www.aljazeera.com/newsletters) Newsletters   (https://sat.aljazeera.net/en) Channel Finder   (https://www.aljazeera.com/schedule/) TV Schedule   (https://www.aljazeera.com/podcasts/) Podcasts   (https://webapps.aljazeera.net/aje/tips/) Submit a Tip   (https://www.aljazeera.com/sponsored) Paid Partner Content      Our Channels Our Channels   Show more  (http://aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Arabic   (https://www.aljazeera.com/) Al Jazeera English   (https://www.ajiunit.com/) Al Jazeera Investigative Unit   (https://www.aljazeeramubasher.net/) Al Jazeera Mubasher   (http://doc.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Documentary   (http://balkans.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Balkans   (http://ajplus.net/) AJ+      Our Network Our Network   Show more  (http://studies.aljazeera.net/en/) Al Jazeera Centre for Studies   (http://training.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Media Institute   (http://learning.aljazeera.net/) Learn Arabic   (http://liberties.aljazeera.com/en) Al Jazeera Centre for Public Liberties & Human Rights   (http://forum.aljazeera.net/) Al Jazeera Forum   (https://hotels.aljazeera.net/en) Al Jazeera Hotel Partners        Follow Al Jazeera English: (https://www.facebook.com/aljazeera) facebook       (https://twitter.com/ajenglish) twitter     (https://www.youtube.com/aljazeeraenglish) youtube     (https://www.instagram.com/aljazeeraenglish/?hl=en) instagram-colored-outline                          (https://www.aljazeera.com/xml/rss/all.xml) rss       (Al Jazeera Media Network logo)   © 2026 Al Jazeera Media Network