Canada's incoming prime minister says he'll meet Trump if Canadian
sovereignty is respected
[March 13, 2025]
By ROB GILLIES
TORONTO (AP) — Canada's incoming Prime Minister Mark Carney said
Wednesday he's ready to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump if he
respects Canadian sovereignty and is open to talk about a common
approach to trade.
Trump has declared a trade war on his northern neighbor and continues to
call for Canada to become the 51st state, a position that has infuriated
Canadians. Trump has threatened economic coercion in his annexation
threats and suggested Tuesday the border is a fictional line.
"I am ready to sit down with President Trump at the appropriate time
under a position where there is respect for Canadian sovereignty and we
are working for a common approach, a much more comprehensive approach
for trade," Carney said.
Carney, who will be sworn in Friday with his new Cabinet, spoke to
reporters at a steel factory in Hamilton, Ontario after Trump officially
increased tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports to 25%. Canada is
the largest foreign supplier of steel and aluminum to the U.S.
Carney said workers in both countries will be better off when "the
greatest economic and security partnership in the world is renewed,
relaunched. That is possible.”
He added he respects Trump's concerns for American workers and about
fentanyl.
“Today is a difficult day for Canada and the industry because of these
unjustified tariffs that have been put on,” Carney said.
Canada responded with its own countermeasures. It plans to impose
retaliatory tariffs of 29.8 billion Canadian dollars ($20.7 billion)
starting Thursday in response to the U.S. taxes on the metals. Canada’s
new tariffs would be on steel and aluminum products, as well as U.S.
goods including computers, sports equipment and water heaters worth
CA$14.2 billion ($9.9 billion).
“We don’t want to do this because we believe in open borders and free
and fair trade but we are doing this in response," Carney said.
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Canadian Prime Minister designate Mark Carney tours the
ArcelorMittal Dofasco steel plant in Hamilton, Ontario, on
Wednesday, March 12, 2025. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via
AP)
Canada’s new tariffs are in addition to its 25% counter tariffs on
CA$30 billion ($20.8 billion) of imports from the U.S. that were put
in place on March 4 in response to other Trump import taxes that he
partially delayed by a month.
Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly said Wednesday this is now
the second round of unjustified tariffs leveled against Canada.
“The excuse for the first round was exaggerated claims about our
border. We addressed all the concerns raised by the U.S.," Joly
said.
“The latest excuse is national security despite the fact that
Canada’s steel and aluminum adds to America’s security. All the
while there is a threat of further and broader tariffs on April 2
still looming.”
Joly said the excuses for those tariffs shift every day.
“The only constant in this unjustifiable trade war seems to be
President Trump’s talk of annexing our country through economic
coercion. Yesterday he called our a border a fictional line and
repeated his disrespectful 51st state rhetoric,” Joly said.
The U.S. president has given a variety of explanations for his
antagonism of Canada. He has said that his separate 25% tariffs on
all imports from Canada, some of which have been suspended for a
month, are about fentanyl smuggling and objections to Canada putting
high taxes on dairy imports that penalize U.S. farmers. He also
continued to call for Canada to become part of the United States.
“Mr. Carney is a serious person, a serious man, and he’ll engage
only if there are serious talks,” Joly said.
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