Canada’s Prime Minister heads to Washington for high-stakes tariff talks

Mark Carney travels to Washington for high-stakes talks with President Trump, following blunt remarks about Canada’s relevance to U.S. interests.

Canada's PM Mark Carney.
Canada’s PM Mark Carney. Photo credit: World Economic Forum

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is set to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday, in what both sides anticipate will be the beginning of difficult and protracted negotiations over newly imposed American tariffs and the broader direction of bilateral relations.

The meeting comes just days after Trump publicly dismissed Canada as irrelevant to U.S. interests. “We don’t need their cars, their lumber, or their energy,” the president told NBC on Sunday. “They need us. We don’t need them.” He also reiterated previous, controversial comments about the possible annexation of Canada, though he added that military force would likely be unnecessary.

Carney, who took office following elections on April 28, emphasized during his first press conference that this visit is far from symbolic. The amount of time allocated by the U.S. administration and the seniority of the officials involved, he noted, suggest the meeting will be “substantive.”

“No one should expect a white smoke moment,” Carney said, adding that Trump’s constantly shifting priorities make negotiations especially challenging.

Accompanying the prime minister to Washington are Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly, International Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc, and Public Safety Minister David McGuinty. Their immediate goal is to push for the removal of U.S. tariffs recently enacted in response to what the White House describes as security threats related to fentanyl and unauthorized migration allegedly flowing into the U.S. from Canada and Mexico.

Beyond that, Carney aims to redefine the long-standing alliance with the United States in both economic and defense terms. The Trump administration’s nationalist turn has triggered a reevaluation in Ottawa, with Carney stating bluntly that “the old relationship with the United States is over.”

In recent days, Carney has been reaching out to international allies, signaling a possible pivot in Canadian foreign policy. On Monday, he spoke with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to congratulate him on his reelection and discuss shared priorities in trade, defense, and maintaining a “free and open Indo-Pacific.”

He also held phone calls with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon. With von der Leyen, the conversation centered on the Canada–EU free trade agreement and joint security cooperation.

As Canada explores alternative trade and defense alignments, the meeting with Trump is likely to set the tone for a more uncertain chapter in U.S.-Canada relations.

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