Europe’s rearmament an ‘extraordinary opportunity’ for Quebec, Legault says
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Monthly Digital Subscription
$0 for the first 4 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*No charge for 4 weeks then price increases to the regular rate of $19.00 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
Monthly Digital Subscription
$4.75/week*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Billed as $19 plus GST every four weeks. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
*Your next subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $16.99 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $23.99 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 30/03/2025 (222 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
HANOVER – Quebec Premier François Legault believes Europe’s rearmament presents an “extraordinary opportunity” for his province as it tries to diversify trade away from the United States.
Legault told a gathering in Hanover, Germany, that Europe plans to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on defence in the coming years, as U.S. President Donald Trump has signaled he may no longer be willing to protect Canada or the European Union.
The chief of the EU’s executive has proposed an 800-billion-euro defence plan that aims to lessen the impact of potential U.S. disengagement and support Ukraine in its war with Russia.
Legault says several Quebec sectors could contribute to that effort, including shipbuilding, aerospace, critical minerals and artificial intelligence.
Legault is in Germany until April 2 on an economic mission aimed at seeking new partners amid Trump’s tariff threats against Canada.
He wrote on social media Sunday that Quebec must transform the worry and anger around the trade war into an opportunity to redefine and strengthen its economy.
In his address to Quebec’s delegation to Germany, Legault sent a pointed message to Trump, who has imposed a 25 per cent duty on Canadian aluminum. Legault noted that Quebec supplies 60 per cent of U.S. aluminum needs.
“Now, Mr. Trump says, ‘I don’t need you guys’… Personally, it would give me pleasure to take a good portion of our aluminum and find places, Germany among others, to send it,” he said, adding that would force Trump to “find aluminum elsewhere.”
The president of the province’s investment arm, Investissement Québec, acknowledged it would be difficult to penetrate the European defence market, but not impossible given the expertise in the province.
“I think there is certainly an opportunity in defence for Quebec, whether it’s at the level of helicopters, planes, flight simulators,” Hubert Bolduc said.
Legault’s trip wraps up Wednesday — the same day Trump has threatened to impose a new barrage of tariffs on Canadian goods.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 30, 2025.