Canada’s Justin Trudeau on Monday said he would step down from the helm of the ruling Liberal Party, but will stay on as prime minister until a new leader is selected.
“I intend to resign as party leader, as prime minister after the party selects its next leader through a robust .. process,” he said during a Monday press conference. He added that the Canadian parliament will be prorogued until March.
Domestic press had reported he was expected to announce his resignation before a key national caucus meeting on Wednesday.
Canada’s latest political crisis was triggered by the abrupt departure of former Trudeau ally and Deputy and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, who resigned in December, citing differences over Ottawa’s response to prospective U.S. trade nationalism over the next four years under Donald Trump’s incoming administration.