Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau believes President Donald Trump’s public statements toward making Canada the ’51st state’ should be taken seriously. Trump has repeatedly labeled Canada the ’51st state’ as he discusses levying heavy tariffs on the country to pressure them into putting more resources into the country’s border with the U.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday said U.S. President Donald Trump's talk about absorbing Canada "is a real thing" and is linked to the country's rich natural resources, a government source said.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told business and labor leaders that he didn’t believe Trump was joking about wanting to annex Canada and suggested his interest might be connected to the country’s minerals and energy resources.