US-Canada ties: PM Carney says both will be ‘stronger together’, with Trump 'working on formulas' for trade deal
US-Canada ties: Prime Minister Mark Carney emphasised the scope for bilateral cooperation amid ongoing trade talks with President Donald Trump. He highlighted Canada's significant investment in the US and stressed the need for mutually beneficial agreements to ease tariff tensions.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney met US President Donald Trump at the Oval Office on Tuesday to discuss trade. The leaders spoke about tariffs, investment and the future of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Mark Carney said both countries would be “stronger together”, while Donald Trump revealed both nations were "working on formulas” for a trade deal.
"President Trump and I know that there are areas where our nations can compete — and areas where we will be stronger together. We’re focused on building these new opportunities," Carney said on X.
Mark Carney, on his second visit to Washington since taking office in April, called Trump a “transformative president,” reported ANI. He said Canada remained the biggest foreign investor in the United States and could invest “probably $1 trillion in the next five years, if we get the agreement we expect to get".
US-Canada have ‘come long way’ in trade talks
President Trump said the two North American countries were in “natural conflict” because they’re both trying to attract the same businesses.
“He wants to make cars, we want to make cars, and we’re in competition. And the advantage we have is, we have this massive market,” Trump said, reported Bloomberg.
He pointed out that both countries have “come a long way” in the trade talks, saying, “we’re working on formulas and I think we’ll get there.”
Carney remarked, “There are areas where we compete, and it’s in those areas where we have to come to an agreement that works. But there are more areas where we are stronger together, and that’s what we’re focused on."
The US has increased tariffs on steel, aluminium, autos, and lumber. Duties on non-compliant goods under the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement have gone up from 25% to 35%, impacting Canadian jobs and investment and causing the country’s economy to shrink in the second quarter, according to Bloomberg.
Trump said that the US, Canada, and Mexico could either renegotiate their trilateral agreement or could each “do different deals."
He said he had no strong preference but is focused on securing the best deal for the US, “also with Canada in mind."
He added that any agreement between the US and Canada would be “comprehensive" and address long-standing issues like dairy.
Canadian minister in charge of US trade Dominic LeBlanc said yesterday's meeting was “more detailed than previous discussions."
(With inputs from agencies)