Carney meets Trump for first time, stresses Canada will never be for sale

WASHINGTON - Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney visited the White House on May 6 for his first talks with Donald Trump and bluntly told the US president that Canada would never be for sale.

Mr Carney

won the April 28 election

on a promise to push back against US tariffs and talk of annexation, later said he had also asked Mr Trump to stop referring in public to Canada as the 51st state.

Overall, Mr Carney termed the meeting as constructive, and said the two sides would start serious talks on a new relationship he insists is needed in the wake of the tariffs.

Mr Trump told reporters the meeting was “great” and noted that he and Mr Carney get along.

“I think the relationship is going to be very strong.”

Although Mr Carney has repeatedly called Mr Trump’s actions a betrayal, the two leaders showed little animosity during an opening session at the Oval Office where both men praised each other in front of reporters before meeting privately.

Mr Trump said the two sides would not be discussing Canada becoming part of the United States, but said it would be “a wonderful marriage.”

Mr Carney put down the annexation idea firmly.

“It’s not for sale, it won’t be for sale - ever,” he said.

“Never say never, never say never,” Mr Trump said.

Mr Trump, whose

tariff policy has rattled world markets,

said he and Mr Carney would discuss “tough points,” an allusion to the president’s belief that the United States can do without Canadian products, a point that he made at length during the Oval Office conversation.

The meeting never appeared at risk of degenerating into the acrimonious exchanges that marked

the visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky

in February.

That encounter has served as a warning for other world leaders about the delicate dance they face in negotiating with Mr Trump.

“Regardless of anything, we’re going to be friends with Canada. Canada is a very special place to me,” Mr Trump said before the private meeting with Mr Carney, adding that the United States would always protect Canada.

The Canadian dollar rose to a near seven-month high against its US counterpart as investors assessed Mr Carney’s visit.

Progress made: Carney

Mr Carney’s Liberal Party promised voters it would create a new bilateral economic and security relationship with Washington and diversify an economy heavily dependent on exports to the US.

“We made progress. We had very comprehensive tangible exchanges and there will be meetings between ministers and officials,” Mr Carney later told a press conference, saying he would meet Mr Trump at a G-7 summit in Canada in mid-June.

Given the potential for missteps and unpredictable reactions from Mr Trump, the sense of relief among Canadian officials was clear.

One senior member of the delegation told Reuters the meeting was “a 10 out of 10.”

Ahead of the visit, Mr Carney played down expectations of a breakthrough in the talks.

Indeed, when Mr Trump was asked if Mr Carney could say anything to persuade him to lift tariffs, he replied, “No.”

A senior Canadian government official said Mr Carney told Mr Trump over lunch the tariffs did not make sense.

Mr Carney told reporters he had asked Mr Trump to stop referring to Canada as the 51st state on the grounds it was “not useful.”

“But the president will say what he wants,” he said.

Mr Carney’s comments about a new economic relationship had cast into doubt the future of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which Mr Trump signed during his first White House term but has distanced himself from. It is due to be reviewed in 2026.

Mr Carney steered clear of suggesting a major revamp, saying only that some things about the pact needed to be changed, while Mr Trump described the agreement as fine and great for all countries.

In a Truth Social post just before the leaders met, Mr Trump reiterated complaints about the trading relationship.

“We don’t need their cars, we don’t need their energy, we don’t need their lumber, we don’t need anything they have, other than their friendship,” Mr Trump wrote.

During the meeting, Mr Trump repeated concerns about what he called the huge US deficit with Canada.

Canada’s merchandise trade surplus was C$102.3 billion (S$95.73 billion) in 2024, due mostly to American imports of Canadian oil.

Canada is the US’ second-largest individual trading partner after Mexico, and the largest export market for US goods. More than US$760 billion (S$979.18 billion) in goods flowed between the two countries in 2024.

The US Commerce Department reported on May 6 Canada’s goods trade surplus with the US narrowed to a five-month low in March, the month when Mr Trump’s hefty tariffs on imported steel and aluminium took effect.

Canadian exports to the US plunged by US$3.7 billion, the second-largest drop on record.

Mr Trump in March imposed a 25 per cent tariff on all steel and aluminum imports and then slapped

another 25 per cent tariff on cars and parts

that did not comply with a North American free trade agreement. REUTERS