WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump gave Canada’s new prime minister, Mark Carney, a frosty welcome to the White Home on Tuesday, saying on social media simply earlier than his arrival that the US doesn’t want “ANYTHING” from its northern neighbor.
“I very much want to work with him, but cannot understand one simple TRUTH — Why is America subsidizing Canada by $200 Billion Dollars a year, in addition to giving them FREE Military Protection, and many other things?” Trump wrote on Fact Social. “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, which hopefully we will always maintain.”
The president added that his inquiry about why the U.S. wants something from Canada “will be, most likely, my only question of consequence.” It’s a declare that defies the underlying financial information as the US depends upon oil produced in Canada, along with an array of different items that cross-border commerce have helped to make extra inexpensive in ways in which profit progress.
Carney received the job of prime minister by promising to confront the elevated aggression proven by Trump, at the same time as he has preserved the calm demeanor of an economist who has led the central banks of each Canada and the UK.
Trump has shattered a decades-old alliance by saying he needs to make Canada the 51st U.S. state and levying steep tariffs in opposition to an important associate within the manufacturing of autos and the provision of oil, electrical energy and different items. The outrage provoked by Trump enabled Carney’s Liberal Social gathering to attain a shocking comeback victory final month as the continued commerce battle and assaults on Canadian sovereignty have outraged voters.
The Republican president has repeatedly threatened that he intends to make Canada the “51st state.” He mentioned in an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press” that aired Sunday that the border is an “artificial line” that stops the 2 territories from forming a “beautiful country.”
Trump’s brazenly adversarial strategy has raised questions for Carney and different world leaders on easy methods to handle relations with the U.S. Some world leaders, comparable to U.Okay. Prime Minister Keir Starmerengaged in a attraction offensive. Others, comparable to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, have been met by Trump with anger for not being sufficiently deferential.
Robert Bothwell, a professor of Canadian historical past and worldwide relations on the College of Toronto, mentioned Carney shouldn’t meet with Trump.
“We’ve seen what he does. We saw what he did with Zelenskyy,” Bothwell mentioned. “And he would sure as hell try to do the same with Carney. It’s not in Carney’s interest. It’s not in Canada’s interest.”
Trump and Carney will meet within the Oval Workplace and have lunch. Carney has pressured that he was elected to particularly “stand up” to the U.S. president and that Canada is “in a once-in-a-lifetime crisis.” Carney mentioned he expects “difficult” however “constructive” conversations along with his U.S. counterpart.
Trump informed reporters on Monday that he wasn’t fairly certain why Carney was visiting.
“I’m not sure what he wants to see me about,” Trump mentioned. “But I guess he wants to make a deal.”
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick additional stoked doubts about their curiosity in repairing the connection with Canada in a Monday interview on Fox Enterprise Community’s “Kudlow” present.
Requested if the U.S. may make a cope with Canada, Lutnick known as the nation a “socialist regime” that has been “basically feeding off America.” Lutnick mentioned Tuesday’s assembly could be “fascinating.”
Trump has maintained that the U.S. doesn’t want something from Canada. He’s actively going after a Canadian auto sector constructed largely by U.S. corporations, saying, “They’re stopping work in Mexico, and they’re stopping work in Canada, and they’re all moving here.” He additionally mentioned the U.S. doesn’t want Canada’s vitality — although practically one-fourth of the oil that the U.S. consumes day by day comes from the province of Alberta.
The president has additionally disparaged Canada’s navy commitments regardless of a partnership that ranges from the seashores of Normandy in World Struggle II to distant stretches of Afghanistan.
Trump has mentioned that Canada spends “less money on military than practically any nation in the world.”
“They pay NATO less than any nation,” he mentioned. “They think we are subsidizing. They think we are going to protect them, and, really, we are. But the truth is, they don’t carry their full share, and it’s unfair to the United States and our taxpayers.”
Bothwell famous that Carney may be below little stress to succeed in a fast deal as Trump has at instances reversed, delayed or defanged his tariffs, such that over time Trump may be in a weaker place if talks are extended.
“It may not matter as much in the summer as it does today because every time he’s made one of these announcements, next week it’s, ‘Oh, I had my fingers crossed. I didn’t mean it,’” he mentioned of Trump.
Daniel Béland, a political science professor at McGill College, mentioned Carney wanted the rapidly scheduled assembly with Trump to deal with the commerce battle began by the U.S. Trump has imposed 25% tariffs on metal and aluminum and tariffs on different merchandise exterior the United States-Mexico-Canada Settlement, in some instances ostensibly to deal with comparatively low volumes of fentanyl intercepted on the border between the 2 nations.
“Carney wants to show that he’s doing everything he can, including taking political risks to protect Canadian jobs in areas such as the auto industry,” Béland mentioned. ”If he had postponed his first assembly with President Trump for months and months, opposition events and commentators may have accused him of being overly shy and doing a disservice to Canada due to that.”
Canada is the highest export vacation spot for 36 U.S. states. Almost $3.6 billion Canadian (US$2.7 billion) price of products and companies cross the border every day. About 60% of U.S. crude oil imports are from Canada, and 85% of U.S. electrical energy imports are from Canada.
Canada can also be the most important overseas provider of metal, aluminum and uranium to the U.S. and has 34 important minerals and metals that the Pentagon is raring for and investing in for nationwide safety. Canada is among the most trade-dependent nations on the earth, and 77% of Canada’s exports go to the U.S.
