The U.S. Justice Department’s antitrust division was instructed earlier this week to pause all work with the Canadian government, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing emails, amid a trade dispute between Washington and Ottawa.
The neighboring nations, close allies for decades, have been increasingly at odds over trade and other issues since President Donald Trump returned to the White House in early 2025. The trade spat has led to tariffs on tens of billions of dollars in cross-border trade.
The Justice Department called the report false in an emailed statement to Reuters, saying the “alleged direction was never given to anyone.”
The division was asked to “temporarily hold off on a scheduled meeting on a specific investigation until the DOJ’s antitrust team had more time to prepare,” the department said.
The White House referred Reuters to the DOJ, while the Canadian government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump has frequently suggested Canada should be an American state, and last week ordered Lake Ontario renamed “Lake America” for U.S. federal government purposes, a distinction that does not affect what Canada or others call the lake.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Lynda Marshall, chief of the antitrust division’s international section, ordered officials in an email on Wednesday to stop all cooperation on cases and engagement on policy issues with Canadian authorities, without providing a reason for the directive.
On Friday, section chiefs in the division were also asked in another email to provide lists detailing areas of cooperation with Canada by the end of the day, the report added. (Reuters)