U.S. Wants First Dibs on Canadian Critical Minerals — and Full F-35 Buy — in Trade Talks: Report

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A tariff fight that began with cars, dairy and alcohol is now reaching into the strategic foundations of the Canada-U.S. relationship. The Globe and Mail reports that Washington wants preferential access to Canadian critical minerals, completion of Canada’s planned 88-jet F-35 purchase, U.S. technology tied to the Golden Dome missile-defence project, and assurances on future oil and gas supplies as trade negotiations intensify. Those demands have not been accepted or announced as terms of a deal, and the talks remain unsettled. But their reported inclusion shows how far the negotiations have expanded beyond ordinary customs disputes. With new 50% U.S. tariffs scheduled for August 19 and Canadian officials still describing major gaps, Ottawa is being asked to weigh short-term tariff relief against decisions that could shape resource markets, military procurement and continental security for decades.

Trade Talks Are Expanding Far Beyond Tariffs

The latest reporting suggests Washington is trying to connect tariff relief with a broader strategic bargain. According to The Globe and Mail, U.S. demands include a right of first refusal on Canadian critical minerals, completion of the full F-35 purchase, U.S.-made technology connected to Golden Dome, and some guarantee involving future Canadian oil and gas supplies. The newspaper’s sources described these issues as influential to a first-stage trade agreement, rather than evidence that Ottawa has accepted them.

That distinction matters because the negotiating picture remains fluid. Reuters reported late Friday that Canadian Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc told an advisory committee the two sides were far apart on a draft agreement. LeBlanc and chief negotiator Janice Charette have remained in Washington as the August 19 tariff deadline approaches. The result is a negotiation with two tracks: pressure to avoid new tariffs and longer-term questions about resources, defence procurement and continental security.

“First Refusal” Could Become the Most Sensitive Demand

Among the reported U.S. demands, a right of first refusal on Canadian critical minerals could be the most economically sensitive. In commercial terms, such a right generally gives one party the opportunity to take a transaction before the supply is offered elsewhere. The Globe report does not disclose the legal wording, which minerals would be covered, how pricing would work, or whether the concept would apply to government-controlled projects, private producers or future production.

Those missing details are crucial. Canada has been trying to attract multiple allied buyers so new mines and processing plants are not dependent on a single customer. Ottawa’s critical-minerals strategy identifies 34 minerals, with lithium, graphite, nickel, cobalt, copper and rare earth elements singled out as priorities for economic growth. Preferential U.S. access could fit a North American security model, but a sweeping commitment could complicate Canada’s effort to build diversified markets in Europe and Asia.

Canada Holds Resources Washington Increasingly Needs

Washington’s interest is understandable when Canada’s resource position is viewed beside U.S. supply-chain concerns. Natural Resources Canada says the country produces 22 of the 34 minerals on its critical-minerals list and has the potential to produce all 34. The United States was Canada’s largest critical-minerals trading partner in 2025, with bilateral trade valued at C$37 billion. That makes Canadian output relevant not only to batteries and clean technology, but to aerospace, electronics, weapons systems and advanced manufacturing.

The United States has declared dependence on foreign processed critical minerals a national-security vulnerability. In July, the White House directed defence contractors to qualify more domestic and partner-country sources for critical materials. Lockheed Martin, which builds the F-35, has been seeking North American supplies of scandium and germanium for military applications. In that environment, guaranteed access to Canadian production would give Washington a buffer against disruptions elsewhere, particularly in China-dominated supply chains.

The F-35 Review Is Suddenly Part of the Trade Fight

The F-35 demand lands in the middle of a Canadian procurement review. Ottawa announced in 2023 that it would acquire 88 Lockheed Martin F-35A fighters to replace the aging CF-18 fleet, but Prime Minister Mark Carney ordered a review in March 2025. Federal material says Canada remains committed to the first 16 aircraft while officials assess whether the F-35 remains the best option for the rest of the fleet under current conditions.

The numbers make this more than an ordinary purchase. National Defence now lists the acquisition budget at C$27.7 billion, covering 88 aircraft, training, support equipment, initial sustainment and new fighter facilities in Alberta and Quebec. The first aircraft are expected at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona for Canadian pilot training, with the first jets arriving in Canada in 2028. Washington’s reported insistence on the full order ties trade diplomacy directly to one of Ottawa’s largest military investments.

Canadian Aerospace Jobs Are Tied to the Fighter Decision

Cancelling or shrinking the F-35 order would have significant economic consequences inside Canada’s aerospace sector. National Defence says more than 110 Canadian companies have received over US$3.6 billion in F-35-related contracts, while 37 Canadian firms hold work on the program. The department estimates each new F-35 contains about US$2.2 million in Canadian-made components, ranging from landing-gear parts to engine sensors and structural assemblies. Those industrial links help explain why the procurement debate is more complicated than choosing between aircraft.

Carney’s government has sought to reduce reliance on U.S. defence suppliers and capture more production at home. Ottawa has considered Sweden’s Saab Gripen as an alternative for part of the requirement, while Saab has promoted Canadian assembly and maintenance. The strategic choice is therefore about interoperability with the United States and NATO, but also jobs, industrial capacity, supply-chain control and how much leverage Canada wants to retain over future military spending.

Golden Dome Creates Another Procurement Collision

Golden Dome adds another important strategic layer because Canada is already discussing continental missile defence with Washington while pursuing a different path on surveillance aircraft. Carney confirmed in 2025 that Canada was talking with the United States about participation in President Donald Trump’s planned multilayer missile-defence system. The concept would combine space- and ground-based sensors and interceptors against advanced missile threats, making Canada’s geography and existing NORAD partnership important to any continental architecture.

Yet Ottawa moved in May to negotiate for Saab GlobalEye early-warning aircraft rather than U.S.-built alternatives. The GlobalEye system uses a Canadian-made Bombardier Global 6500 airframe, and Canadian officials examined a fleet of six aircraft. The Globe report says Washington now wants Ottawa to buy U.S. technology, including radar planes, as part of Golden Dome participation. If accurate, that demand would reopen a procurement direction Canada had shifted toward Sweden and domestic aerospace content only months earlier.

Oil and Gas Guarantees Would Touch a Massive Existing Relationship

The reported request for guarantees on future oil and gas supplies reaches into a deeply integrated energy relationship. Canada’s energy regulator says the United States accounted for 90.8% of Canadian hydrocarbon exports by volume in 2025. Canada supplied 63.4% of all U.S. crude-oil imports and close to 100% of its imported natural gas. In value terms, 85% of Canada’s C$197.8 billion in energy exports went to the United States last year.

Those figures show why Washington may want predictability, but they also show why Ottawa has invested elsewhere. The Trans Mountain expansion helped Canadian crude exports to non-U.S. destinations rise 132.6% in 2025, while Canada’s first LNG exports from British Columbia opened an overseas outlet for natural gas. A formal supply assurance could strengthen continental energy security, depending on its design, but it could also become contentious if it limits Canada’s ability to redirect future production toward higher-value global markets.

An August 19 Tariff Deadline Gives Washington Immediate Leverage

The leverage behind these discussions is the August 19 tariff deadline. Trump has ordered 50% duties on US$20 billion of Canadian imports using Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930. The White House says covered products range from wine and cement to clothing and hockey sticks. Unlike earlier U.S. measures, the new tariffs would apply even when affected goods qualify for preferential treatment under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico trade agreement, although energy, potash and critical minerals are among the exemptions.

Reuters calculates that the targeted goods equal 5.2% of U.S. imports from Canada in 2025. Ottawa is seeking tariff relief while Washington has demanded changes involving autos, dairy and provincial access for American alcohol. That creates an imbalance in timing: the tariff threat can arrive within days, while mineral access, fighter procurement and missile defence could create obligations lasting decades. The central question is what Canada might trade for immediate certainty.

Ottawa Has Spent Months Building Alternatives

Canada enters these talks with more alternatives than it had years ago. In March, Ottawa announced 30 new critical-minerals partnerships and investments involving 12 allied partners, unlocking C$12.1 billion in projects. Combined with earlier commitments, the government says its Critical Minerals Production Alliance is mobilizing C$18.5 billion in Canadian projects. Canada has worked with France, Japan, Australia, Germany and others on supply arrangements intended to reduce dependence on China and any single Western customer.

Defence diversification is moving in the same direction. Canada selected the Saab GlobalEye path for airborne early warning, is expanding with European partners and has pledged to increase core defence spending toward 3.5% of GDP by 2035. That does not remove the United States from Canada’s security architecture or resource market. It means Ottawa’s objective is to preserve U.S. access without rebuilding the kind of single-market dependence its diversification strategy is designed to reduce.

The Biggest Details Are Still Negotiating Positions

For now, the key fact right now is that no final bargain containing these reported demands has been announced. The Globe’s account relies on unnamed Canadian and U.S. sources, while Ottawa statements have emphasized ongoing negotiations rather than confirmed concessions on minerals, the F-35, Golden Dome or energy guarantees. Reuters also reports substantial distance remains between the two sides, even as officials continue meeting through the weekend before the August 19 deadline.

Several major questions still remain: whether “first refusal” would cover all critical minerals or only selected projects; whether Canada would commit to the remaining 72 F-35s beyond the first 16; what U.S. equipment would be linked to Golden Dome; and what an energy guarantee requires. Until written terms emerge, those points remain negotiating positions, not Canadian policy. Their significance is clear: trade talks are now testing how much strategic autonomy Ottawa is willing to exchange for tariff stability.

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