U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's position on marijuana could cause some "discomfort" if Canada goes ahead with its plan to legalize, according to one expert.
Trump has said he is going to keep marijuana illegal on a federal level, and plans to nominate Republican Senator Jeff Sessions as attorney general. Sessions is a vocal advocate against legalization, who once said that "good people don't smoke marijuana," according to The Washington Post.
W.A. Bogart, a law professor at the University of Windsor, told Bloomberg that this could spell some trouble for Canada's relationship with the U.S.
"If Mr. Trump and Mr. Sessions decide this is part of the new Trump-land, that could cause a lot of discomfort ... for Canada and its compliance with international covenants, most of which are focused on prohibition. That could be a real wild card," Bogart said in an interview with Bloomberg TV Canada's Amanda Lang.
"This is going to require some diplomatic skills ..."
Canada will have to amend its position on international treaties that condemn cannabis possession and production — treaties that the U.S. strongly supports.
"This is going to require some diplomatic skills, depending on what Trump does," Errol Mendes, a constitutional and international law professor at the University of Ottawa, told The Canadian Press.
Donald Trump has said he intends to keep marijuana illegal on a federal level.
However, some say that Trump's opposition to pot could actually help Canada's industry.
U.S. companies who want to do research on marijuana's medical applications face plenty of hurdles thanks to the drug's status. That could leave a big opening for Canada.
“It creates a window of opportunity for us to do research without competition from America,” Bruce Linton, CEO of medical marijuana company Canopy Growth, told Global News.
Watch Bogart's interview with Bloomberg above.
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