Canada is now shipping liquefied natural gas to South Korea as the North American country looks to decrease its dependence on trade with the United States.

Canada sent its first natural gas shipment from British Columbia to Asia last week, hoping to diversify its export markets. Canadian officials are billing the shipment as a milestone moment.

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“Canada has what the world needs,” Prime Minister Mark Carney said. “By turning aspiration into action, Canada can become the world’s leading energy superpower.”

In 2023, Canada exported 45% of its natural gas supply to the U.S. following an 18% decrease from 2010 to 2021. The U.S. has remained Canada’s primary destination for LNG exports.

Moving away from its long-standing relationship with the U.S., Canada wants to expand its LNG export capacity to Asia, where prices are 30% to 50% higher. This is expected to reduce American imports from Canada by 20% in the next two years.

While the U.S. has a high demand for natural gas, the Trump administration’s moves to increase domestic oil and gas production will likely offset the nation’s need for Canadian gas.

With its LNG Canada export facility, British Columbia has positioned itself to surpass Alberta as Canada’s largest natural gas producer. The two provinces are at odds over LNG exports, with Alberta wanting increased access to ports and pipeline infrastructure through British Columbia.

British Columbia borders the Pacific Ocean, while Alberta is landlocked.

Meanwhile, LNG exports face environmental concerns from British Columbia residents who protest the amount of tanker traffic along their coastline and the number of pipelines over the province’s mountainous regions.

Canada’s move to export its LNG supply to South Korea comes amid heightened tensions between the U.S. and Canada, whose trade talks recently resumed after President Donald Trump said he would terminate negotiations with the northern neighbor. The talks briefly ended after Canada vowed to continue maintaining its digital services tax on U.S. tech companies, which Carney reversed course on.

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Canada will not be a recipient of the letters that Trump plans to send to foreign nations that have yet to reach a trade deal with the U.S. The tariff rates are set to take effect on Aug. 1, and Trump’s negotiation window is set to expire this Wednesday.

Carney wants to strike a deal by July 21. Otherwise, Canada will increase trade countermeasures.