Carney says Canada 'can't control trade policy of US' after Trump ends tariff talks

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has said that Ottawa “can’t control the trade policy of the US”, a day after US President Donald Trump announced that he was terminating trade talks with the country.

“We recognise that that policy has fundamentally changed from the policy in the 1980s, 1990s, the 2000s, and it’s a situation where the United States has tariffs against every one of their trading partners in different countries,” Carney said.

Despite Trump’s announcement, Carney said that Canadian officials are negotiating a trade deal with their American counterparts, adding that “a lot of progress” has been made.

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Trump announced on his Truth Social network on Thursday that he had “terminated” all negotiations with Canada over what he called the “fake” ad campaign that he said misrepresented fellow Republican Reagan.

However, the ad was pulled down hours later, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said after consultations with PM Carney.

“In speaking with Prime Minister Carney, Ontario will pause its US advertising campaign effective Monday so that trade talks can resume,” Ford said in a post on X.

What did the ad say?

The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute posted on X that an ad created by the government of Ontario “misrepresents the ‘Presidential Radio Address to the Nation on Free and Fair Trade’ dated April 25, 1987.” It added that Ontario did not receive foundation permission “to use and edit the remarks.”

The foundation noted that it is “reviewing legal options in this matter” and invited the public to watch the unedited video of Reagan’s address. Earlier this month,  Carney held talks with Trump to ease trade tensions as the three nations prepare for a review of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, the Trump-era trade deal that has since soured.

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Canada looks at other options

Meanwhile, Carney has unveiled plans to double the exports from markets outside the US by 2035, amounting to an extra $214 billion in trade.

Carney announced the extraordinary plan in a rare prime-time speech on Wednesday, sticking to his election campaign promise of making Canada less reliant on the US, which currently buys about 75 per cent of Canadian exports.

“Many of our former strengths, based on close ties to America, have become our vulnerabilities,” Carney said. The prime minister emphasised boosting trade ties with countries like India and China.

With inputs from agencies