Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday Canada would seek to highlight the negative impact of the United States' steel and aluminum tariffs and that — if needed — the response from Canada would be firm and clear.

"Canadians will stand up strongly and firmly if we need to," Trudeau said at the sidelines of the Paris artificial intelligence summit.

U.S. President Donald Trump raised tariffs on steel and aluminum imports on Monday to 25% without exemptions, aiming to revive the flagging sector but risking a broader trade war.

Trudeau described those tariffs as "unacceptable."