Canada’s new fentanyl czar Kevin Brosseau said he intends to bring “an intensity” to his role in fighting against fentanyl, with the ultimate goal of completely eliminating the drug from Canada and the United States.
“I’m hoping to be able to give an intensity to the work being carried out by thousands of men and women in this country and the United States trying to deal with the real public safety and national security crisis that is fentanyl,” he told reporters on Feb. 12 at the Lansdowne port of entry between Canada and the United States.
Brosseau said the two countries should have a goal of “eliminating the scourge” of fentanyl from their countries. “If it’s one pound, 10 pounds, we all know the amount of deaths that that possibly could represent. This is a national security and a public safety crisis,” he said.
Brosseau, who previously served as RCMP deputy commissioner and national security adviser to the prime minister, said he would be bringing an “integrated approach” to his new role by collaborating with Canadian and American officials.
The creation of Brosseau’s new role came as part of a deal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made with U.S. President Donald Trump to pause 25 percent tariffs on Canadian imports. During a Feb. 3 phone call, Trudeau committed to appointing a “border czar,” listing Mexican cartels as terrorist organizations, and putting $200 million toward an intelligence directive on organized crime and fentanyl, on top of the $1.3 billion already committed to boost border security.
Trump agreed to pause the tariffs until March 4 while Canada and the United States work out an “economic deal.” He also agreed to a pause on 25 percent tariffs on Mexico after President Claudia Sheinbaum agreed to deploy 10,000 troops to the border.
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Brosseau said that he has not yet spoken to U.S. border czar Tom Homan, but intends to speak with him soon. “I’m being briefed by senior Canadian law enforcement officials later on today and tomorrow … And I look forward to continuing those conversations with my American counterparts very soon,” he said.
When asked if he had been given any directives on “tangible goals” on fentanyl, Brosseau said he would have more to say in the coming days. “It is day one, but stay tuned. I hope to be able to demonstrate and show the tangibility of that work.”
A Criminal Intelligence Service Canada report from 2024 also noted that the involvement of organized crime groups in the fentanyl trade has risen by 42 percent since 2019.
During a Feb. 10 interview with Fox News, Trump said he had gotten “a lot of action that nobody expected” from Canada and Mexico on the border, but that it was “not good enough.”
“When I talked about Canada … it started out for security, and then it started getting economic, and it’s really both,” Trump added.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in Brussels on Feb. 12 that Canadian officials are engaging “strategically” with their U.S. counterparts to avoid three series of tariffs that could stack on top of each other. Canada is also facing 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports starting in early March, as are all steel and aluminum exporters to the United States. As well, further tariffs on Canada could be levied in April after the United States Trade Representative and Commerce Department complete their study into how the United States could use tariffs to reduce its trade deficits with other countries.
Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc, who met with Trump’s pick for U.S. commerce secretary Howard Lutnick in Washington, the same day, said following the meeting that Canada has the “attention” of the United States when it comes to working out an economic deal.
LeBlanc said while the threats of 25 percent tariffs are not “pushed off the table completely,” the two sides had made “good progress” on national security issues and the fight against fentanyl. “I’m reassured, but the work isn’t done,” he said.
