Carney Stresses Canada Will Never Be for Sale in First Meeting with Trump

• Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney visited the White House on Tuesday, May 6, 2025, for his first talks with Donald Trump and bluntly told the U.S. President that Canada would never be for sale.
• Carney won the April 28 election on a promise to stand up to Trump, who has imposed tariffs on some Canadian products and often muses about annexing the country. Although Carney has repeatedly called these 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.
• Trump, whose tariff policy has rattled world markets, had said he and 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. "Regardless of anything, we're going to be friends with Canada. Canada is a very special place to me," Trump said, adding that the United States would always protect Canada.
• Importantly, 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 U.S.
• Carney's comments about a new economic relationship had cast doubt on the future of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, which Trump signed during his first White House term but has distanced himself from. It is due to be reviewed in 2026. Carney steered clear of suggesting a major revamp, saying only that some things about the pact needed to be changed, while Trump described the agreement as fine and great for all countries.

(Source: Reuters)