DES MOINES — United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer warned Friday that the Trump administration will proceed with its plan to impose hefty new tariffs unless Canada drops retaliatory measures — and there’s no deal on the table yet despite intensified talks.

As the clock counts down to Wednesday’s tariff deadline, Canada-U.S. Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc updated provincial and territorial trade ministers and members of the prime minister’s advisory committee on Canada-U.S. economic relations on the state of the talks.

Following LeBlanc’s update, Quebec Economy Minister Bernard Drainville said “there’s still no agreement, in fact they’re still quite far from an agreement.”

“At the moment, there’s no sign that Mr. Trump might postpone the application of the 50 per cent tariffs,” Drainville said at a meeting in Montreal with representatives of Quebec’s agricultural sector.

Erin O’Toole, former Conservative leader and member of the prime minister’s advisory committee, said he was disappointed but not surprised there was no deal yet.

He anticipated if a deal were reached it would be at the “11th hour” before the Aug. 19 deadline the U.S. has set for its latest tariff threat.

O’Toole said the government is preparing a response in the event the U.S. hits Canada with a 50 per cent tariff on a wide variety of goods.

“We will have to respond and there is discussion about how the government is looking at all options on the table in terms of response,” O’Toole said. “The Americans now know that we’re serious and that it will not be good for their economy, not be good for ours. It sort of shows the fallacy of tariffs being smart policy.”

Candace Laing, president and CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and a member of the advisory committee, said she remains hopeful both sides are closing in on an “interim deal.”

“It’s important to remember what’s at stake. Businesses have been doing a high-wire act for well over a year, holding off on hiring, investment and growing in Canada,” she said in a statement.

If the tariffs hit, Laing said, they will have a “non-absorbable impact” on businesses and put Canada into “uncharted territory.”

Canadian officials have ramped up talks with their American counterparts in recent weeks after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order to impose 50 per cent tariffs on a range of Canadian goods starting Wednesday.

The Trump administration says the new duties are a response to provincial bans on U.S. liquor, Canada’s supply-managed dairy system and quotas on certain U.S. vehicles.